IOC to brief sports chiefs today

TOKYO • The International Olympic Committee (IOC) will hold talks with heads of international sports organisations today in response to the coronavirus pandemic, according to a source close to an international federation which was briefed on the issue.

The IOC will also hold an unscheduled executive board meeting via teleconferencing internally to discuss the latest developments, another source said.

With less than five months to go until the scheduled start of the Tokyo Olympics on July 24, questions have been raised as to whether the Games are safe to go ahead.

A source within the Olympic movement told Reuters, however, that no decision was expected today by the executive board.

The Covid-19 disease has killed more than 6,500 people in the world and infected more than 170,000.

It has wreaked havoc on the global sporting calendar, leading to some Olympic qualification events being cancelled or postponed and concern has been rising about whether the Games should be scrapped or postponed.

The number of infections in Japan rose to 1,530 yesterday, including 696 from the Diamond Princess cruise ship. Deaths in Japan related to the virus stand at 31.

However, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Tokyo 2020 organisers have reiterated that preparations are going on for the Games to be held as planned.

Abe told parliament yesterday he wanted the Tokyo Games to represent a world's victory over the pandemic, Kyodo news reported.

According to a telephone poll conducted by Kyodo, however, Abe's fellow citizens are less optimistic about prospects for the Games, with 69 per cent of respondents saying they did not think Tokyo would be able to host the event as planned.

Kyodo did not say how many people were questioned in the survey but public opinion in Japan appears to be moving against the Games.

Another poll by public broadcaster NHK taken from March 6-9 suggested 45 per cent were opposed to going ahead as planned, with 40 per cent in favour.

The IOC said that today's talks were a regular part of dialogue with stakeholders.

"Since this situation started to develop some weeks ago, the IOC is constantly updating its stakeholders on the latest developments," the IOC said in a statement. "The calls are part of this regular information sharing process."

IOC sports director Kit McConnell also discussed changes to qualification processes with international sporting federations last week.

In a letter to federations, he said the organisation had established an implementation group to "act quickly, where necessary, on behalf of the IOC EB (executive board) to approve the necessary changes to the qualification systems".

The letter, dated March 9, was seen by Reuters.

Changes could include the extension of qualification periods, but not beyond June 30, the re-assignment of quota allocations and the removal of certain eligibility criteria.

It is not known whether further changes to the qualification process would be discussed at the IOC executive board meeting.

Several qualifying events, including those for climbing, boxing, fencing and judo, have been cancelled or postponed, leaving athletes in the lurch.

REUTERS, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE