Any decision to hold the Tokyo Olympics or postpone it for a year due to the coronavirus pandemic must be based on science, assured Joe Biden, the president of the United States in a radio program.
The Games are scheduled to start in less than six months and the Government of Japan and the International Olympic Committee want them to take place as planned, under strict conditions that could include that they were celebrated without public.
Biden, who spoke on Westwood One Sports this Sunday during the Super Bowl break, said he hopes the Olympics will be held, mainly for the benefit of athletes who have trained hard for it.
“I have spoken with the Prime Minister of Japan and he is working very hard to hold the Games safely and I think that is based on science, whether or not it is safe, for this to happen.”
Biden, who became president in January, said he hates to think that athletes won’t be able to compete. “Imagine all the Olympians who have worked four years towards this goal and all of a sudden they lose this opportunity.”
“They are the people I would hurt for, but we have to do this based on science,” he added. “We are an administration driven by science and I think so is the rest of the world. I hope they can be celebrated and that it is possible, but we will see.”