Coronavirus: Why postponing the Olympics looks tricky

Text by: David Kalfa Follow

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has paved the way for a possible postponement of the next Summer Olympics, scheduled for July 24 to August 9, because of the coronavirus pandemic. Postponing the Tokyo Games, however, looks extremely difficult. Explanations.

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The Olympic Games were only canceled during the two world wars

The modern Winter and Summer Olympic Games are held every four years. This symbolism is strong. So much so that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) gave up the Olympics only during the two world wars. The 1916 edition, attributed to Berlin, had been canceled because of the Great War. Those of 1940 and 1944 collided with the Second World War. Since then, the IOC has maintained its flagship event at all costs. Postponing the Tokyo Games would already represent a catastrophe for the IOC, even if its President Thomas Bach assured that health and safety took precedence over everything.

The International Olympic Committee is not the only decision maker

Whatever happens, the IOC will not be the only decision maker. Japan, the future theater of the Summer Games, will have its say, after having invested billions (about 12, officially) in these 2020 Olympics. The Japanese authorities had already mentioned the possibility of a postponement, there are a few weeks. However, will the International Olympic Committee and Tokyo manage to agree on the terms and the serious consequences (financial, in particular) of such an operation?

Business partners will have a say

And what about the IOC's commercial partners? Multinationals (Coca-Cola, Toyota, Visa, etc.) invested billions in the Olympic Games. The only Japanese sponsors have already reported 3.3 billion dollars to the local organizing committee for the 2020 Olympics. Will these companies all accept a postponement? And, if so, will they be satisfied with a postponement of the Tokyo Games of several months, or even several years? Finally, broadcasters - American in particular - will do everything to ensure that this edition does not fall at the same time as other lucrative sports programs.

Everything is planned (or almost) for this summer

Officially, the IOC does not rule out keeping the 2020 Olympics on schedule, even if this option now seems unthinkable because of the Covid-19. The organizers' mad hope is due to the fact that everything is almost stalled this summer: sports facilities, transport, thousands of hotel nights (booked several months in advance), volunteers trained for the occasion ... Without talk about the Olympic Village, a vast complex of housing already sold and which the future owners are expected to seize after the Paralympic Games (August 25-September 6). Having to reschedule and rearrange an event that brings together 11,000 athletes and hundreds of thousands of visitors is going to be a huge puzzle, with incalculable repercussions.

Reporter, yes, but when ?

Above all there remains the big question: to postpone, yes, but when? Three options seem to emerge. The first would be to postpone the event to next fall, like the 1964 Tokyo Games (October 10 to 24). This solution would be the simplest from a logistical and organizational point of view. It would also prevent the 2020 Olympics from competing with other major competitions. But it has two very big drawbacks: typhoons are common during this period in Japan and it is not at all certain that the coronavirus pandemic will have ended before the end of the year.

The second possibility would be to postpone the Olympic Games by one year. This idea seems the most plausible even if the sports calendar will be overloaded in the summer of 2021. Finally, last possibility: Summer Games which are held in 2022 like those of winter. Advantage: there will be no Football World Cup in June-July, the edition in Qatar exceptionally taking place in November-December. Disadvantages: this would disrupt the running of the 2022 Youth Olympic Games in Senegal and the preparations for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. Not to mention the endless wait for already qualified athletes who will have to wait two years before living their Olympic dream…

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