Will the Tokyo Olympics Actually Happen?

ESPN Daily

ESPN

Sports

4.6 • 3.9K Ratings

🗓️ 27 May 2021

⏱️ 24 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

The 2020 Tokyo Olympics have been in limbo since the COVID pandemic gripped the world. The games have already been postponed a full year, and are now less than two months away. But even as the opening ceremonies on July 23rd draw closer and closer, it’s still unclear whether or not the Tokyo Olympics will actually take place. With coronavirus cases surging in Japan, and distribution of the vaccine proceeding slowly, Tokyo is currently under a state of emergency. And perhaps most importantly, public opinion in Japan is now firmly on the side of canceling the games outright. But the International Olympic Committee has been adamant about moving forward with the games. ESPN senior writer Tom Hamilton, who’s based in London, and the Times of London’s Asia editor Richard Lloyd Parry, who’s based in Tokyo, explain the financial implications, public health risks, and other factors at play as the Tokyo Olympics hang in the balance. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	I can say it's now clearer than ever that these games will be safe for everyone participating
0:12.0	and importantly safe for the people of Japan. All of the plans that we have in place to protect the safety and security of the athletes
0:22.6	and the people of Japan are based around the worst possible circumstances,
0:27.6	and so the answer is absolutely yes.
0:30.6	That's John Coates, Vice President of the International Olympic Committee,
0:36.6	assuring everyone this week that the Tokyo Olympics will be precisely what so many fear they won't be.
0:44.3	Safe.
0:46.3	But with just under two months left before the opening ceremony
0:50.3	and Tokyo under a state of emergency because of COVID-19.
0:55.0	So many people all across Japan are refusing to buy what these games are selling.
1:02.0	Today, we ask two reporters, one who covers the business of the Olympics and the other on the ground in Tokyo.
1:10.0	Whether something once unthinkable,
1:13.5	a cancelled summer games, might now become re-edict. I'm Pablo Torre. It's Thursday, May 27th. This
1:23.6	is ESPN Day, presented by UKG.
1:28.5	Our purpose is people.
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1:40.0	I've been a runner my whole life.
1:41.2	Just survived in New York City Marathon.
1:43.6	But a few years ago, my life went off script in a way that I didn't see coming.
1:47.6	I was diagnosed with epilepsy.
1:50.0	You just toppled over head first.
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	...

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