JPN Cabinet Member: Olympics Being Held ‘Could Go Either Way’

We reported earlier this week that in two polls conducted by Japanese news agency Kyodo and the Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS), more than 80% of respondents said that the Tokyo Olympics should be canceled or postponed or say they believe the Olympics will not take place.

In the wake of this waning public support for the postponed 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, a Japanese cabinet minister said this week that the Games’ likelihood of proceeding is still not 100%.

“We need to do the best we can to prepare for the games at this moment, but it could to either way”, Taro Kono, administrative and regularly reform minister, told the Reuters Next conference.

The recent state of emergency declared in the nation of Japan has increased concern over the safety of holding the Games, with new coronavirus infections in Tokyo alone exceeding 1500 this past Thursday, January 14th.

“Anything is possible, but as the host of the games we need to do whatever we can, so that when it’s a ‘go’, we can have a good Olympic Games,” Kono said. “The Olympic Committee must be thinking about Plan B, Plan C. But the situation is not easy.”

Tokyo 2020 organizing committee President Yoshiro Mori this month said a decision should be made in February or March whether the COVID-19 risks have fallen enough to let spectators attend. (Japan Today)