Tokyo 2020: "Cancelling the Games would've been the easiest decision, we were insured" (T. Bach)

"If the financial consequences alone had been taken into account, we would have had to cancel the Games. It would have been the easiest decision for the IOC, because we were covered by insurance in case the Games were cancelled. We could have played it and started preparing for Paris 2024," said IOC president Thomas Bach (GER) in an interview with the French sports daily L'Équipe on 20/07/2021.

"But the IOC will never give up on the athletes. Cancellation was not an option. On the contrary, we have created an envelope of $800m (€678m) to make the Games possible for the athletes and for Japan," said the president of the International Olympic Committee, who arrived in Tokyo (JPN) on 08/07/2021 and who is chairing the IOC session organised in the Japanese capital on Tuesday 20 and Wednesday 21/07/2021.

"We said from the beginning that the number one priority was to have safe and secure Games for everyone: the participants, the Olympic delegations, the Japanese people. We made it clear to the Japanese authorities that we would support their decision, whatever it was. As soon as they…