Athletes who have booked their berth in Olympics will remain qualified: IOC President

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach on Saturday confirmed that the already qualified athletes will remain qualified for the delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympics next year.

"It is clear that those athletes who have qualified for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 remain qualified. This is a consequence of the fact that these Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, in agreement with Japan, will remain the Games of the XXXII Olympiad." - Thomas Bach, IOC President," Olympics official Twitter handle wrote.

After the postponement of Olympics by one year, there was uncertainty over the fate of the qualified athletes. Bach's remarks come as a relief for the qualified athletes.

On Tuesday, for the first time in the history of the mega global event, the Olympics were postponed by a year. The decision was confirmed by the IOC after the organising body for the event and Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe agreed to reschedule the Tokyo Olympics in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The IOC has, however, said that the original name of Tokyo 2020 will remain intact irrespective of the fact that it will take place next year.

The Tokyo Olympic Games were slated to be held from July 24 to August 9, while the Paralympic Games were scheduled to be held from August 25 to September 6.