Olympic Committee say Games remain on track

THE International Olympic Committee (IOC) insist that the 2020 Games scheduled for Tokyo in July will go ahead despite the coronavirus pandemic.

In an extraordinary statement the Swiss-based organisation claimed there is no need for “any drastic decision at this stage” regarding this summer’s Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The statement came following talks with International Sports Federation chiefs.

The IOC dismissed as “counterproductive” speculation that the Games could be postponed or cancelled.

Less than 24 hours after their

Boxing Task Force was forced into an embarrassing U-turn to suspend the European Olympic qualifying tournament in London, the IOC insisted that the Games will began on July 24 as planned.

The conference call between IOC chiefs and the heads of the international federations (IFs) focused on the now suspended qualification process across all sports for the Games. The IOC acknowledged this was a “significant challenge”.

Fifty-seven per cent of the 11,000 athletes eligible have qualified for the Games, and the IOC said it will “work with the IFs to make any necessary and practical adaptations to their respective qualification systems” for the remaining 43 per cent of places.

According to the Inside the Games website, the IOC will consider using rankings and historical results to determine Tokyo 2020 places in sports whose qualification processes has been affected by the coronavirus.

Changes to the qualification systems will be published by the beginning of April.

“The IOC remains fully committed to the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, and with more than four months to go before the Games there is no need for any drastic decisions at this stage; and any speculation at this moment would be counter-productive.

“The IOC encourages all athletes to continue to prepare for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 as best they can,” added the statement.