Olympics was not defeated by terror attacks and political boycotts – but finally falls to coronavirus – The Sun

UNTIL now, the show always went on.

Outside World Wars, the Olympic Games were an immovable feast.

Terror attacks in Munich in 1972 and Atlanta in 1996 couldn’t halt the greatest sporting jamboree on Earth.
Political boycotts couldn’t derail Moscow 1980, nor Los Angeles 1984.

Even under the Nazi flag in Berlin in 1936, the Olympics carried on regardless.

And then American Jesse Owens won four gold medals to expose Hitler’s lies of an Aryan master race.

Not now, though. Coronavirus proved an even greater foe for the Olympics.

In Tokyo, the countdown clock had reached 122 days before they finally gave in to the inevitable — and postponed the Games for a year.

It had been obvious for days, perhaps weeks, as soon as various qualifying events were cancelled.

When Olympic associations in Canada, Australia and Britain threatened to boycott, the endgame was complete. We should not be too harsh on the Japanese for delaying their announcement, made in conjunction with the International Olympic Committee.

The golden summer of London 2012 is still fresh in our minds.

From Danny Boyle’s mesmeric opening ceremony to the glorious mayhem of three British track-and-field golds in 45 minutes on Super Saturday, those 17 days stand as a testament to happier, simpler times — when we showed off to the world and the world loved us for it.

Why has it taken so long to confirm the Olympics will be postponed?

Moving the Olympics and Paralympics is not like switching a football match. There are lots of moving parts. Not to mention the investment of £10billion.

So when will it take place?

The Olympics have been moved from July 24 by 12 months but will be “no later than summer 2021”. The exact dates are TBC at this stage.

Was it the right call?

Yes. There was no way the Games could go ahead amid a global pandemic. Several nations had started pulling out and hardly anybody has disagreed with the decision.

What happens with flights, accommodation, training camps etc?

All that has to move, too. For athletes, they now have to train solidly for 16 months rather than four.

What 2021 events will be affected?

Football’s Euro 2020 has already been moved to next summer. The Olympics will clash with the athletic and swimming world champs, and detract from the Lions’ rugby tour of South Africa.

So what can we watch this summer?

Maybe EastEnders or Coronation Street!

Postponing such a celebration, the biggest such decision ever made during peacetime, is agony for the host city.

Especially in Japan, a nation where the concepts of pride and loss of face can be such heavy burdens.

Costs have already topped £10billion and the logistics of a delay will now be nightmarish for Tokyo, as well as the governing bodies of 33 participating sports.

The Japanese were gracious hosts at last year’s Rugby World Cup. God willing, they will be so again next summer.

The worldwide scale of this unprecedented health crisis meant the Olympics were more susceptible to the pandemic than any other major event.

Upwards of 11,000 athletes from every nation on Earth would have been crammed into Tokyo’s Olympic Village.

Sadly, this is no time for melting pots. With social distancing likely to last for many months across huge swathes of the planet, no credible Games could have been held in July and August.

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