TOKYO, (Reuters) – The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is working with sports bodies to arrange for a July-August 2021 Summer Games in Tokyo and is hoping to announce a decision within the coming month, an official was quoted as saying in Japan’s Yomiuri newspaper. Australia Olympic Committee board chair John Coates, who is also head of the IOC’s Coordination Commission for the Tokyo Games, told the paper the Games would have to be held between the Wimbledon Championship, scheduled to end July 10 next year, and the U.S. Open in September.
The IOC and Japanese government succumbed to intense pressure from athletes and sporting bodies around the world on Tuesday, agreeing to push back the Games by as much as one year because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Coates’ reported comments added to those of other officials, some of whom have provided contradictory dates.
Coates also told the Yomiuri that the hope was to follow the same arrangements next year that had been planned, including holding the marathon in the northern city of Sapporo instead of Tokyo to escape the heat.
