The International Olympic Committee has bowed to pressure and decided to postpone the Olympic Games, which were scheduled for next summer in the Japanese capital, Tokyo, by one year, due to the repercussions of the outbreak of the new Corona virus (Covid-19).
Japan faces great challenges due to the delay decision, and the authorities will be required to deal with its repercussions, which are expected to cost the country treasury billions of dollars.
Official estimates indicate that Japan spent about $ 12 billion to organize the largest sporting event in the world, and those expenses included building new sports facilities or modifying some existing facilities to host competitions in the tournament, in addition to building an Olympic village with a capacity of 18 thousand beds to house sports delegations.
After the contest, which was to be held between July 24 and August 9, was postponed, Japanese economist Katsuhiro Miyamoto expected that his country would suffer a loss of about $ 6 billion.
French newspaper Le Figaro quoted the Japanese expert as saying that the losses include the maintenance costs of 43 sports facilities that were to host the games, and the additional cost of preparing for the games next year.
Those losses include the cost of postponing converting the Olympic Village into luxury apartments that were supposed to start handing over to their owners starting in 2023, and the organizers will be in front of the inevitability of delaying the work of preparing these apartments and paying compensation to the beneficiaries, some of whom have paid the amount of the purchase of his apartment.
The losses also include the sums which will be denied to the country due to the cancellation of the trips of about 600 thousand visitors and what they would have spent on accommodation, entertainment and shopping while they attended the competitions.
And the Japanese expert expected that the next edition of the Olympics will not be widely received by visitors due to the repercussions of the Coruna outbreak, which may continue until the start of the competitions.
The losses will not depend on Japan. Experts have warned that the postponement of the Olympics will also affect the income of the International Olympic Committee, which will affect many of the sports programs funded by the Committee in different regions of the world.
The Organizing Committee for the Olympics has won sponsorship contracts with more than $ 3 billion, and the organizers must renegotiate with the owners of those contracts, to adapt them according to the developments some decision of postponement and strive to ensure that the value of those contracts does not decline and incur additional losses.