NOC-K, govt backs postponement of Olympic Games

The National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOC-K) and the Ministry of Sports have welcomed the move to postpone the Olympic Games due to the coronavirus pandemic.

In a joint statement issued by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Committee on Tuesday, the Games that were due for July 24- August 9 in Tokyo, Japan will be rescheduled to 2021.

“The unprecedented and unpredictable spread of the outbreak has seen the situation in the rest of the world deteriorating… the IOC President and the Prime Minister of Japan have concluded that the Games in Tokyo must be rescheduled to a date beyond 2020 but not later than summer 2021, to safeguard the health of the athletes, everybody involved in the Olympic Games,” the statement read.

The decision came amid widespread calls for the global showpiece to be postponed with Canada and Australia having already pulled their athletes from the Summer Games.

NOC-K Acting Secretary General Francis Mutuku hailed the move to delay the Games.

“We at the National Olympic Committee of Kenya are delighted to support the International Olympic Committee (IOC) move to postpone the Olympic Games. In the wake of the challenges posed by the spread of COVID 19, Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games were unfeasible and too risky to undertake.

With the outbreak and spread of corona virus, it was impractical for countries to send their athletes considering the high risk of getting infected. Indeed, NOCK was averse to sending Kenyan athletes to participate in the games.

With this bold decision, the IOC has provided our athletes with an opportunity to re-strategies and plan their training and conditioning with winning medals at the Olympics a top priority,” said Mutuku.

At the same time, Sports Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohammed has also voiced the government’s satisfaction with the postponement of the Games.

“Kenya welcomes the decision of the Government of Japan and the International Olympic Committee to postpone the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics and Paralympics by a duration of not more than one year.

The Government of Kenya understands that this decision was in no way easy and that it was taken into consideration the highest regard for the values and ideals of Olympism, the welfare of current or aspiring Olympians and the well-being of the human race,” she said.