World News – AU – The Tokyo Olympics may symbolize human resilience after COVID

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Officials in Victoria cannot agree on around 1. Letting 000 players, officials and support staff in the state for the Australian Open to start in January.

But a world away, the G20 Summit of Heads of State and Government concluded with a message of support for the Tokyo Olympics, where tens of thousands are expected to gather next July.

In the final declaration of the G20 summit, the host cities of the next two Olympic Games were named as symbols of the resilience of the world in the fight against the pandemic.

« As a symbol of mankind’s resilience and global unity in overcoming COVID-19, we commend Japan’s determination to host the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games next year, » said the joint statement by the G20 leaders.

International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach spoke at the summit, invited by Saudi officials believed to be strengthening ties with the IOC ahead of a possible Olympic bid.

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« During this coronavirus crisis, we all saw the importance of exercise to physical and mental health, » he said.

« Following this agreement, the United Nations, WHO and the IOC launched a co-branding campaign entitled » Healthy Together « , which launched projects internationally. « 

« We have learned an important lesson from this crisis: we need more solidarity, more solidarity within societies and more solidarity between societies, » he said.

« We will soon celebrate this demonstration of solidarity at the postponed Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

« With the participation of all 206 National Olympic Committees and the IOC Refugee Olympic Team, these Olympic Games will send a strong message of solidarity, resilience and unity of humanity in all our diversity. « 

While visiting Tokyo last week to inspect facilities and review current contingency plans, Bach described the Games as « a light at the end of the tunnel ». .

But the Japan Times newspaper has called the determination to move the games forward as a « gamble » amid great uncertainty about the pandemic and access to a vaccine. .

Kenneth McElwain, a professor at Tokyo University’s Department of Social Sciences, told the paper that it was difficult to weigh the benefits of hosting the Games against the cost of canceling them.

« If the Olympics don’t happen, on a global level, I suspect there will be a lot of shrugs . . . in Japan it will be much darker and would trigger a relitigation of any decision the government has made. « 

Meanwhile, negotiations for the Australian Open in Victoria continue. The players firmly believe that they need to train during their pre-tournament quarantine.

Due to the state government’s decision to prevent an arrival in December, the players will be quarantined for the first two weeks of January. The game starts four days later at the Open.

Options discussed include keeping the data current, but allowing players access to training facilities during the quarantine period or delaying the opening for a few weeks or even a few months.

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Summer Olympics 2020, International Olympic Committee, 2022 Winter Olympics, Winter Olympics, Thomas Bach, Tokyo