IOC president ‘of course’ considering alternatives for Tokyo Olympics due to coronavirus

IOC leader Thomas Bach reiterated that the IOC does not need to make any decisions now because the opening ceremony isn’t until July 24.

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The International Olympic Committee is “of course” considering alternatives if COVID-19 makes it impossible to hold the Tokyo Games this summer, but president Thomas Bach indicated in an interview with The New York Times that cancellation is not one of them.

Despite the worsening coronavirus pandemic, Bach reiterated that the IOC does not need to make any decisions now because the opening ceremony isn’t until July 24. Conditions are changing rapidly, and Bach said the bleak conditions now might change.

“We don’t know what the situation will be,” Bach told The Times. “Of course we are considering different scenarios, but we are contrary to many other sports organizations or professional leagues in that we are four and a half months away from the Games.”

He and the IOC have come under increasing criticism in recent days from athletes and national Olympic leaders begging for clarity.