Tokyo Olympics on, organisers say, as virus hits Japan events

The Tokyo 2020 Olympics are going ahead, organisers said Wednesday, even as the government called for major events in coming weeks to be postponed, cancelled or scaled back over the new coronavirus.

The fate of the Summer Games has been in the spotlight as the outbreak of COVID-19 forces the cancellation and delays in Japan of everything from football matches to the rituals that mark the opening of the March sumo tournament.

But organisers have been at pains to insist that Olympics and Paralympics scheduled for the summer are not in danger of being scrapped.

"We have not thought about it. We have not heard about it. We have made inquiries, and we were told there is no such plan," Tokyo 2020 CEO Toshiro Muto told reporters.

"Our basic thinking is to conduct the Olympics and Paralympics as planned. That's our assumption."
"When we consulted with IOC... we were told it was not IOC's thinking."
"At that time, we received a high rating on our preparation for the Tokyo Games, and the IOC offered to continue its support."
But Hashimoto said her focus now was "simply to end the (virus crisis) at the earliest time possible, to hold the Tokyo Games with a sense of safety, and to get approval from the IOC."