IOC Releases Statement Concerning Next Steps for Federations, Olympic Games A major goal is stakeholder efforts toward containing the coronavirus By Ken Kerschbaumer, Editorial Director Wednesday, March 18, 2020 - 1:16 pm
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The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has continued its consultations with all the stakeholders of the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. The first took place with the International Olympic Summer Sports Federations. Those with the National Olympic Committees (NOCs), the athletes' representatives, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), other international federations (IFs), and other stakeholders will follow in the coming days.
The consultations have produced a communique setting out the principles established by the IOC Executive Board (EB), along with their implementation in cooperation with all the stakeholders concerned. The IOC will continue to act as a responsible organization. In this context, the IOC asks all its stakeholders within their own remits to do everything to contribute to the containment of the virus.
The health and well-being of all those involved in the preparations for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 is our number-one concern, says IOC President Thomas Bach. All measures are being taken to safeguard the safety and interests of athletes, coaches, and support teams. We are an Olympic community; we support one another in good times and in difficult times. This Olympic solidarity defines us as a community.
IOC's Thomas Bach says all measures are being taken to safeguard the safety and interests of Olympic athletes, coaches and support teams.
Adds Francesco Ricci Bitti, president, Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF), I would like to thank all those involved in the organization of the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 and all the athletes and the international federations for their great flexibility. We share the same approach and the same principles as the IOC, and we are as committed as the IOC to successful Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. We will keep in touch and have further consultations with all stakeholders concerned.
THE IOC COMMUNIQUE:
This is an unprecedented situation for the whole world, and our thoughts are with all those affected by this crisis. We are in solidarity with the whole of society to do everything to contain the virus.
The situation around the COVID-19 virus is also impacting the preparations for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 and is changing day by day.
The IOC remains fully committed to the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, and, with more than four months to go before the Games, there is no need for any drastic decisions at this stage; and any speculation at this moment would be counter-productive.
The IOC encourages all athletes to continue to prepare for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 as best they can. We will keep supporting the athletes by consulting with them and their respective NOCs and by providing them with the latest information and developments, which are accessible for athletes worldwide on the Athlete365 website and via their respective NOCs and IFs.
The IOC has confidence that the many measures being taken by many authorities around the world will help contain the situation of the COVID-19 virus. In this context, the IOC welcomes the support of the G7 leaders as expressed by Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo, who said, I want to hold the Olympics and Paralympics perfectly, as proof that the human race will conquer the new coronavirus, and I gained support for that from the G-7 leaders.'
We will continue to act in a responsible way and have agreed on the following overriding principles about the staging of the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020:
To protect the health of everyone involved and to support the containment of the virus.
To safeguard the interests of the athletes and of Olympic sport.
The IOC will continue to monitor the situation 24/7. Already in mid February, a task force was set up consisting of the IOC, the World Health Organization (WHO), the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee, the Japanese authorities, and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government.
The purpose of the task force is to ensure coordinated actions by all stakeholders. It has the mission to keep a constant appraisal of the situation to form the basis for the ongoing operational planning and necessary adaptations. The task force also monitors the implementation of the various actions decided. The IOC will continue to follow the guidance of this task force. The IOC's decision will not be determined by financial interests, because, thanks to its risk-management policies and insurance, it will in any case be able to continue its operations and accomplish its mission to organize the Olympic Games.
A number of measures have been taken.
The format of all the test events in March and April has been altered to allow for the testing of essential Games elements; the lighting of the Olympic torch in Greece and subsequent elements of the Torch Relay in Japan are being adapted; the entire Games preparation supply chain has been analyzed; and alternative plans are in place in the event of anticipated disruption.
At the same time, the topics and issues which were identified by the IOC Coordination Commission for the Games as priorities continue to retain the full attention of Tokyo 2020, the IOC, and the Olympic stakeholders. In this respect, work is ongoing for the preparation of athletics road events in Sapporo; heat countermeasures continue to be detailed and refined on a sport-by-sport basis; and transport and crowd-movement planning remain a key focus of attention.
Concerning the next meetings, especially the upcoming Coordination Commission visit and various project reviews, adjustments have been made to the agenda and participation. While the activities remai
