KEY POINTS

  • The coronavirus continues to infect thousands of lives across the world
  • The IOC has decided to postpone the 2020 Olympic games
  • Kevin Love among other athletes share their thoughts on the postponement 

The world continues to adjust to the threats of the coronavirus as everyone is expected to stay indoors to combat the infection rate. As a result, several major events have been canceled or postponed. There has been an absence of sports for the past few weeks, as the health and safety of people remain to be the priority.

The global pandemic has caused the hiatus of the NBA, MLB, NHL, and other sports. It has caused the cancelation of the Indian Wells Masters and the postponement of the French Open. Football across the world has also been affected by UEFA postponing the Champions League and Europa League finals.

To add to these, the Olympics have also been hit by the COVID-19 as the Tokyo games are left with no choice but to postpone likely to 2021. With thousands of people flocking to one area, the density of fans, athletes, and media will be impossible to practice responsible social distancing.

“On the basis of the information the IOC has, postponement has been decided,” veteran International Olympic Committee member Dick Pound shared.

He proceeded by sharing that the implications of this are immense. “It will come in stages. We will postpone this and begin to deal with all the ramifications of moving this, which are immense.”

Despite this, athletes and people across the world have shown their support with the decision. NBA star Kevin Love spoke of the issue and how it was a reasonable direction to take. “It’s definitely responsible just knowing all the countries that participate and knowing what’s going on now,” he said.

“Just getting ahead of it is super smart, because of the unknown of what the world is going to look like,” he continued.

American hurdler Lolo Jones agrees with the decision to postpone the games, as it has been a major concern for her and her fellow athletes. It was a big relief for them to be able to prioritize their health before anything else.

Several others also chipped in their thoughts with the big move – understanding the situation while finding a dash of humor into the news.

Olympic Rings - Tokyo Olympics 2020
The Olympic Rings are pictured at the International Olympic Committee (IOC) headquarters in Lausanne on March 3, 2020. FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP via Getty Images
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