Japanese government officials privately believe that the upcoming Tokyo Olympics will have to be postponed due to a pandemic of coronavirus, the London Times reported Thursday.
The Times reported that Japanese officials are now focusing their efforts on getting the next free astronaut for the Summer Games, in 2032. According to the report, there is a private consensus there is no way to hold the Olympics in the summer, and officials are looking for a way to save faces and maintain hospitality rights in the future.
The Games have already been postponed a year, and Olympic officials have said they will not be further delayed.
The cancellation of the Games would be a major blow to athletes, as well as Comcast’s CMCSA,
NBCUniversal and its new streaming service, Peacock. In 2014, NBC paid more than $ 7 billion for the rights to broadcast the Olympics through 2032. The Olympics are historically among the top events on TV, and Peacock has been count on the Olympics as a key way to manage new subscriptions. Comcast’s shares were little changed on Thursday.
Earlier on Thursday, International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach told Kyodo Japan News that the Summer Games are still on track to open July 23 in Tokyo, but said “Plan B. does not exist. ”
“We are fully committed to making these games safe and successful,” he told the publisher.
Although Japan has had considerable success during the pandemic, a spike in new cases, as well as the discovery of new changes around the world, has revived concern, and crisis in many parts of the country. Foreign travelers were also banned.
Even with COVID-19 vaccines going on all over the world, the huge logistics of taking off the Olympics – from qualifying competitions in each individual country, to fans and tourists into the host country, to the great Olympic city where athletes lived. in dense areas – they are scary even in the best conditions, much less in a pandemic.
Two surveys earlier this month found that 80% of those who have been punctured in Japan think the Olympics should be postponed or postponed again, or said they are believes that the Games will not happen.