Tokyo Olympics 2020, what's happening next?

The cheer of the crowds. The sweltering Summer weather. World records beaten. Colorful opening and closing ceremonies. There’s much to love about the Summer Olympic Games. And despite concerns about budgets and construction, they are often an economic and cultural boon for any host country. However, the Tokyo Olympics 2020 has brought little but misfortune in the past year.

The Games were originally scheduled to take place in Summer 2020, but were delayed due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Now there’s a question mark over the Games happening in 2021. Despite rumours that the games may be cancelled or postponed again, these claims have been officially rebuffed.

Currently, the organising committee and Japanese government say the games are going ahead in 2021 as planned.

Some news reports circulating today are claiming that the Government of Japan has privately concluded that the Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020 will have to be cancelled. This is categorically untrue.
– Naikakukanbō (内閣官房), Cabinet Secretariat of the Japanese Government

While there’s much to be hopeful about in the coming year, with vaccines being rolled out across the world, it’s hard to predict how quickly normality may return. If restrictions are eased enough in time for the Summer, then there’s no reason the Games shouldn’t go ahead (albeit, likely scaled back in some form).

With an ongoing state of emergency across several regions in Japan, and coronavirus cases passing 300,000 in January 2021, it’s difficult to say how this will all pan out.