Tokyo’s 2020 Summer Olympics
Tokyo’s 2020 Summer Olympics is reportedly postponed due to coronavirus pandemic. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) and Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe agreed to postpone the start of Tokyo’s 2020 summer Olympics to 2021 after Canada, Australia and other countries announced they would not send athletes to this July’s Summer Games.
Olympic is the biggest sporting event
Summer Olympics is the world’s biggest sporting event, usually bringing together over 10,000 participants from hundreds of countries.
The Olympic Games started in 1896
Postponing or canceling the Summer or Winter Olympics is highly rare. Since 1896, when the modern Olympic Games started, it has only happened six times.
This is the first time the Olympic Games have had to be canceled without a war
Between World War I and World War II, the Olympic Games were canceled. The 1940 Summer Games, set to take place in Tokyo, were delayed due to war and moved to Helsinki, Finland, where they were later canceled. The present coronavirus pandemic marks the first time the competition has been indefinitely delayed for non-war purposes. Here’s the list.
- 1916 Summer Olympics – Berlin, Germany
- 1940 Summer Olympics – Tokyo, Japan and Helsinki, Finland
- 1940 Winter Olympics – Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany
- 1944 Summer Olympics – London, United Kingdom
- 1944 Winter Olympics – Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy
- 2020 Summer Olympics – Tokyo, Japan
