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Japanese government officials privately believe the upcoming Tokyo Olympics will need to be canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic, the London Times reported on Thursday.
The Times said Japanese officials are now focusing their efforts on securing the next free time slot for the Summer Games, in 2032. According to the report, there is a private consensus that there is no way the Olympics will be held this time. summer, and officials are looking for a way to save face and secure future hosting rights.
The Games have already been postponed for a year and Olympic officials have said they will not be delayed any longer.
Canceling the Games would be a huge blow to athletes, as well as Comcast’s CMCSA,
NBCUniversal and its fledgling streaming service, Peacock. In 2014, NBC paid more than $ 7 billion for the rights to broadcast the Olympics through 2032. Historically, the Olympics are among the highest-rated events on television, and Peacock has featured the Olympics as the key to generate new subscriptions. Comcast shares changed little Thursday.
Early Thursday, the president of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach, told Japan’s Kyodo News that the Summer Games are still on track to open on July 23 in Tokyo, but added that “there is no Plan B.”
“We are fully committed to making these games safe and successful,” he told the publication.
While Japan has done relatively well during the pandemic, an increase in new cases, as well as the discovery of new variants around the world, have renewed concern and a state of emergency has been declared in much of the country. All foreign travelers have also been banned.
Even with COVID-19 vaccines underway around the world, the massive logistics of holding the Olympics, from qualifying competitions in each individual country, to the influx of fans and tourists to the host country, to the massive Villa Olympic where the athletes would live. in tight spaces – they are overwhelming even under the best of circumstances, much less in a pandemic.
Two polls earlier this month found that 80% of respondents in Japan believe the Olympics should be canceled or postponed again, or they said they believe the Games will not take place.
