Japan says they have no plan B if Olympics are postponed a second time

Olympic organizers in Tokyo said Tuesday that there is currently no plan B if the summer games — initially scheduled for this July — are postponed again in 2021 due to COVID-19 concerns.

Spokesman for the Tokyo Olympics Masa Takaya said that organizers are working under the assumption that the Olympics will start on July 23, 2021, with the Paralympics starting on Aug. 24.

“We are working toward the new goal,” Takaya told the press through a conference call, per The Associated Press. “We don’t have a B plan.”

He added: “All I can tell you today is that the new games’ dates for both the Olympic and Paralympic Games have been just set up. In that respect, Tokyo 2020 and all concerned parties now are doing their very best effort to deliver the games next year.”

International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach said in the German newspaper Die Welt over the weekend that Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and organizers have signaled that the country “could not manage a postponement beyond next summer at the latest.”

The Olympics and Paralympics draw nearly 16,000 athletes as well as staff from the 206 national Olympic committees across the globe.

According to the AP, Tokyo has said it is spending $12.6 billion to organize the Olympics, though a government audit from 2019 showed that costs were twice that amount.