[Source: IOC / Tokyo 2020)The President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Thomas Bach, and the Prime Minister of Japan, Abe Shinzo, held a conference call this morning to discuss the constantly changing environment with regard to COVID-19 and the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020.

They were joined by Mori Yoshiro, the President of the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee; the Olympic Minister, Hashimoto Seiko; the Governor of Tokyo, Koike Yuriko; the Chair of the IOC Coordination Commission, John Coates; IOC Director General Christophe De Kepper; and the IOC Olympic Games Executive Director, Christophe Dubi.

President Bach and Prime Minister Abe expressed their shared concern about the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic, and what it is doing to people’s lives and the significant impact it is having on global athletes’ preparations for the Games.

In a very friendly and constructive meeting, the two leaders praised the work of the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee and noted the great progress being made in Japan to fight against COVID-19.

The unprecedented and unpredictable spread of the outbreak has seen the situation in the rest of the world deteriorating. Yesterday, the Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said that the COVID-19 pandemic is "accelerating". There are more than 375,000 cases now recorded worldwide and in nearly every country, and their number is growing by the hour.

In the present circumstances and based on the information provided by the WHO today, the IOC President and the Prime Minister of Japan have concluded that the Games of the XXXII Olympiad in Tokyo must be rescheduled to a date beyond 2020 but not later than summer 2021, to safeguard the health of the athletes, everybody involved in the Olympic Games and the international community.

The leaders agreed that the Olympic Games in Tokyo could stand as a beacon of hope to the world during these troubled times and that the Olympic flame could become the light at the end of the tunnel in which the world finds itself at present. Therefore, it was agreed that the Olympic flame will stay in Japan. It was also agreed that the Games will keep the name Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020.

The International Olympic Committee is a not-for-profit independent international organisation made up of volunteers, which is committed to building a better world through sport. It redistributes more than 90 per cent of its income to the wider sporting movement, which means that every day the equivalent of 3.4 million US dollars goes to help athletes and sports organisations at all levels around the world. doing to people’s lives and the significant impact it is having on global athletes’ preparations for the Games.

In a very friendly and constructive meeting, the two leaders praised the work of the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee and noted the great progress being made in Japan to fight against COVID-19.

The unprecedented and unpredictable spread of the outbreak has seen the situation in the rest of the world deteriorating. Yesterday, the Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said that the COVID-19 pandemic is "accelerating". There are more than 375,000 cases now recorded worldwide and in nearly every country, and their number is growing by the hour.

In the present circumstances and based on the information provided by the WHO today, the IOC President and the Prime Minister of Japan have concluded that the Games of the XXXII Olympiad in Tokyo must be rescheduled to a date beyond 2020 but not later than summer 2021, to safeguard the health of the athletes, everybody involved in the Olympic Games and the international community.

The leaders agreed that the Olympic Games in Tokyo could stand as a beacon of hope to the world during these troubled times and that the Olympic flame could become the light at the end of the tunnel in which the world finds itself at present. Therefore, it was agreed that the Olympic flame will stay in Japan. It was also agreed that the Games will keep the name Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020.

Following the International Olympic Committee’s announcement over the weekend that it is scenario planning for postponing the Games, the IOC’s former head of marketing said that the mostly likely outcome is to move by a year to summer 2021, while IOC member Sir Craig Reedie warns that this could take up to four weeks to confirm.

The comments were made on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

“Everyone clearly wants clarity as soon as possible. The IOC would like to announce a definitive new date as soon as they can. But they can’t do that until they’ve worked through some of the mind-boggling complexity with the Japanese,” said Michael Payne, who as IOC head of marketing launched the TOP sponsor programme that transformed the fortunes of the Games.

“I think until recently the Japanese were desperately hoping the Games would still be taking place this July. Only now are the Japanese seriously looking at plan B. The main issue is looking at all the logistics within Japan, of the venues, as to how can they effectively mothball them for whatever period of time necessary.

“And the international sporting calendar – I think it’s becoming increasingly clear that a short delay wouldn’t solve the problem. You have to look at a one-year delay, and I think that will come sooner rather than later.”

“The IOC President Thomas Bach and the Japanese Prime Minister have said cancellation is off the table. Japan has invested billions of dollars and they obviously still want to proceed, albeit with a different date.

“For the IOC they want to do everything possible to avoid disenfranchising the 10,000 athletes. Postponement is clearly where this is now going, and most likely for one year.”

Sir Craig Reedie has served as vice president of the IOC and Executive Board member. Asked what advice he would give to Japanese President Abe and IOC president Bach now, he said: “I’d be saying to them, is it possible that the contractual situation that you will have with a whole range of suppliers – it’s venues, particularly it's accommodation, it’s with various people – can these contracts be amended to a postpone the Games to a later date? I suspect that’s why a suggested period of four weeks is required, to see if that is possible.”

“Thereafter the issue seems to be clearly twofold. Firstly, will Japan be sufficiently clear of the virus? And secondly will the rest of the world have moved on to such a stage that athletes will no longer be afraid of travelling and taking part?

“The whole region has been massively infected by the spread of the virus. Everybody is saying athletes cannot prepare properly, there is danger in asking them to do so.

“So the balance of probability is that Japan have to be asked if they can change their logistical arrangements, particularly I think in the area of accommodation.

“And if that can be done then the IOC, I think, will look at postponing the Games.”

National Olympic Committees are beginning to prepare their teams for a 2021 event, with Canada having already pulled out of 2020.