According to the Japan Times, the country’s Olympic Minister Seiko Hashimoto is optimistic that the Olympic Games will happen in Tokyo in 2021 no matter how the Covid-19 situation evolves. The games were supposed to take place in the summer of 2020 but were postponed due to the pandemic. However, the current plan is to hold them next year even if the pandemic is not over yet.
“I think we have to hold the games at any cost. I want to concentrate all our efforts on measures against the coronavirus,” Hashimoto said in a news conference recently. “It will take place with or without COVID. The Games will start on July 23 next year,” agreed the International Olympic Committee vice president John Coates.
According to the current schedule, the 2020 Olympic Games will open on July 23rd, 2021. For now, Japan’s borders are still shut to foreign visitors and there aren’t signs that we’re going to have a vaccine soon, so it’s unclear how the organizers plan to proceed.
If the games truly happen in 2021, the Japanese officials will do everything in their power to keep everyone safe, including testing protocols, strict rules, and plans for controlling potential outbreaks.
