Japan’s new prime minister Yoshihide Suga insists Tokyo Olympics will take place next year to prove that ‘humanity has defeated’ the coronavirus pandemic
- Yoshihide Suga said Japan would ‘lead’ the world’s recovery from coronavirus
- The new prime minister wants the Games to show humanity has beat Covid-19
- Organisers said in February the Olympics would go ahead as scheduled in 2020
- But a month later that statement was retracted due to the coronavirus pandemic
Japan‘s new prime minister has vowed the Tokyo Olympics will take place next summer ‘as proof that humanity has defeated the pandemic’.
Yoshihide Suga told the UN General Assembly’s virtual summit his country would ‘proactively lead’ the world’s recovery from coronavirus.
‘In the summer of next year, Japan is determined to host the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games as proof that humanity has defeated the pandemic,’ he said.
Japan’s prime minister Yoshihide Suga has vowed thr Tokyo Olympics will take place next year
The 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo were put back a year in March due to coronavirus
‘I will continue to spare no effort in order to welcome you to Games that are safe and secure.’
Organisers said in February the Olympics would go ahead as scheduled from July 24 2020.
But in March the International Olympic Committee and Japan said in a joint statement the Games ‘must be rescheduled to a date beyond 2020 but not later than summer 2021’.
Meanwhile last week, Olympic chiefs confirmed they are in talks about limiting the number of fans at next summer’s rearranged Games.
At a Tokyo 2020 executive board meeting, organising committee chief executive Toshiro Muto admitted they are close approving ’50 to 60′ items to simplify the event and cut costs.
Organisers initially said in February the Games would go ahead as scheduled from July 2020