Canada Won’t Attend Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics
The Canadian Olympic Committee, in association with the Canadian Paralympic Committee, announced a joint statement on March 22nd. This statement notified that Canadian Athletes wouldn’t participate in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, expressing that the games must be pushed back by twelve-months. Olympic venues in Tokyo are slated to begin on July 24th, with the Paralympics following on August 25th. Considering that Covid-19 continued to spread worldwide, it’s not shocking that both committees came to this decision. Canada is the 1st to confirm they won’t participate. Multiple other nations are expected to follow.
The Canadian Olympic Committee’s statement reads that the inherent complexities associated with postponing the 2020 Olympics is extensive but is minimal in comparison to the safety of athletes. Protection extends to the world community, with attendees from dozen of countries expected to arrive in Tokyo. COC Representatives notified that the safety of the Canadian community, Japanese community and overall global community is more important than the Olympics. Executives connected to the International Olympic Committee would most likely disagree, with these individuals receiving considerable backlash for their refusal to recognize the detriments surrounding Covid-19.
The negative global response against the International Olympic Committee’s decisions with Covid-19 prompted their president to implement a specific deadline. Thomas Bach is demanding that everyone associated with the IOC make a collective decision regarding the postponement of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. It should be mentioned that Thomas Bach is flat-out refusing to cancel this venue and wait an additional four years for the summer Olympics. Sporting analysts expect that the 2020 Tokyo Olympics will be switched to July 2021.
Rescheduled Olympics
The International Olympic Committee provided official statements regarding this deadline. It was expressed that the deteriorating situation surrounding Covid-19 is prompting all sporting events to alter their scheduling. Though the IOC hoped this wouldn’t include the Olympics, safety measures must be implemented to guarantee global public security. It was confirmed that current agendas would be modified for 2021 following the decision that the Olympics will be postponed. However, executives with the IOC still believe these events can go forward without any concerns regarding Covid-19. Medical experts globally have disagreed with these statements.