Longest-Serving IOC Member: "Tokyo Olympics Postponement Already Decided... Likely to Be Held Next Year"

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] Dick Pound, a Canadian member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), stated on the 23rd (local time) that a decision to postpone the Tokyo Olympics, scheduled to be held in July, has already been made.

In a phone interview with USA Today on the same day, Pound said, "Based on the information the IOC has, the postponement has already been decided," adding, "There is no decision yet on the future process, but as far as I know, the Games will not be held on July 24."

Pound mentioned that it is highly likely the Tokyo Olympics will be postponed to 2021 and that specific details will be decided over the next four weeks. He said, "It will proceed step by step," and added, "We will postpone it and begin to deal with the enormous impact that comes with it." Pound, originally from Canada, is the longest-serving active IOC member, having held various key positions such as executive board member and vice president since becoming an IOC member in 1978.

The IOC, at an emergency executive board meeting the previous day, for the first time mentioned postponement, stating that it "will begin detailed discussions including scenarios for postponement to complete the assessment of the rapidly changing global health situation related to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) and its impact on the Olympics."

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