Tokyo Olympics Head Says Games Not Possible Under Current Conditions

Tokyo 2020 Organizing Committee President Yoshiro Mori speaks during a press conference in Tokyo, Japan, on July 17, 2020. (Kyodo News via AP/ File)

TOKYO—The delayed Tokyo Olympics couldn’t be held next year if conditions surrounding the coronavirus pandemic continue as they are, the president of the organizing committee said July 22.

In an interview with Japanese broadcaster NHK, Yoshiro Mori says he’s hopeful the situation will improve and suggested a vaccine was the key.

“If this kind of situation [with COVID-19] continues, is it possible to hold the games?” Mori was asked by NHK.

“If the current situation continues, we couldn’t,” Mori replied, speaking in Japanese.

The Tokyo Olympics are scheduled to open on July 23, 2021. A small, 15-minute ceremony without fans is scheduled for July 23 at the new national stadium to mark the date.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) and Japanese organizers have repeatedly expressed confidence the games will take place, although they have offered few details on how they can happen in the middle of a pandemic.

Tokyo 2020 Olympics President Yoshiro Mori holds the Olympic Flame during a ceremony at Japan Air Self-Defense Force Matsushima Base in Higashi-Matsushima, Japan, on March 20, 2020. (Issei Kato/Reuters)

A performer stands next to the Olympic flame during the Olympic flame handover ceremony for the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics, in Panathenaic Stadium, Athens, Greece, on March 19, 2020. (Aris Messinis/Pool via Reuters)

The IOC and organizers have also said the Olympics won’t be postponed again and would be canceled.

“It would be too much for us to answer each of these hypothetical questions,” Mori said. “I don’t think this situation will last for another year.”

Researchers have said a vaccine could be six to nine months away, which Mori said is the key. Some, however, question if young athletes should be a priority, and if all would agree to be vaccinated.

“Whether the Olympics can be done or not is about whether humanity can beat the coronavirus,” Mori said. “Specifically, to develop a vaccine or drug is the first point.”

Organizers and the IOC say they want to simplify the games to help reduce the soaring costs. But officials can’t say now if fans will be permitted next year, or if athletes will face quarantines. They say few details will be available until the fall.

Plans call for the full contingent of 11,000 Olympic athletes and 4,400 Paralympic athletes to be competing at 42 venues.

About 1,000 deaths in Japan have been attributed to the coronavirus. Tokyo has seen a rising number of daily cases in the past few weeks, which reached a high of almost 300 last week.

But the numbers are relatively modest for a metropolitan area of 14 million.

By Stephen Wade and Haruka Nuga