LAUSANNE, Switzerland – Despite worldwide concern and speculation about whether the fast-spreading virus outbreak will affect the Tokyo Olympics, the International Olympic Committee’s leadership is not joining the debate.
“Neither the word cancellation nor the word postponement was even mentioned,” IOC president Thomas Bach said at a news conference Wednesday regarding the second day of the organization’s executive board meeting in Lausanne.
Bach sought to project calm assurance after holding a conference call with local organizers. In Tokyo, officials then briefed local media, some of whom wore protective masks.
Asked how he could be so confident the July 24-Aug. 9 Summer Games will go ahead as scheduled, Bach replied: “Because we talk to the experts.”
“We are a sports organization, and we follow the advice of the World Health Organization,” Bach said, referring to the United Nations agency based some 40 miles away in Geneva.