Joe.My.God. LGBT News
Time Magazine reports:
A spokesman for the Japanese government on Wednesday said the International Olympic Committee and local organizers are going ahead as planned with the Tokyo Olympics despite the threat of the spreading coronavirus.
The comments from spokesman Yoshihide Suga follow the assertion by former IOC vice-president Dick Pound that organizers face a three-month window to decide the fate of the games. The Olympics are set to open on July 24 with 11,000 athletes. The Paralympics open Aug. 25 with 4,400.
Pound told the Associated Press that the fast-spreading virus could cancel the Olympics. Suga says Pound’s opinion does not reflect the official view of the IOC, which has repeatedly said there are no plans to cancel or postpone the Tokyo Games.
Sports Gazette reports:
Badminton’s German Open will not go ahead next week and the Polish Open has been postponed, officials said as two more Olympic qualifying events fell victim to the coronavirus.
It hasn’t yet been decided whether the German Open, originally scheduled for March 3-8, will be postponed or canceled entirely, the Badminton World Federation said late Wednesday. New dates are being sought for the Polish Open, which was meant to take place on March 26-29, but it will not now fall in the qualifying period for the Tokyo Olympics.
The loss of qualifying tournaments will pose a problem for many players including two-time Olympic champion Lin Dan, who needs a rapid rise up the rankings to win a place on the Chinese team.
There are no plans to cancel the Olympic torch relay — but officials are working on how to host the event without increasing the risk of coronavirus infection https://t.co/llx3EJOyy5
— CNN International (@cnni) February 27, 2020