IOC strongly weighing tennis calendar in deciding Tokyo Olympics dates
The organization reportedly is eyeing a window between 2021 Wimbledon and the US Open, and hopes if solutions with other sporting conflicts can be resolved, to finalize a decision in four weeks.
The tennis calendar appears to be a significant consideration for the International Olympic Committee (IOC) as it begins tackling a multitude of logistical hurdles to reschedule the Tokyo 2020 Olympics next year.
Earlier this week, organizers concluded postponing the Games until 2021 was the only option after numerous National Olympic Committees and athletes said the current climate the COVID-19 pandemic has produced was unsafe and created disparity in opportunities to properly train. In their announcement, the IOC made clear there was no possibility of it being staged at a later date on the current calendar year.
According to Japanese newspaper Yomiuri, the IOC is targeting a similar window to its original July 24-August 9, 2020 dates. Coordination Commission chief for Tokyo John Coates reportedly told the publication the new slot would need to fall between Wimbledon—scheduled to end July 11, 2021—and the US Open, slated to begin main draw action on August 30, 2021.
“We want to more or less finalize the dates in four weeks’ time,” Coates said.
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Two popular Olympic sports currently have notable conflicts during that period with their 2021 world championships. Swimming is scheduled for July 16 through August 1 in Fukuoka, Japan—about 675 miles west of Tokyo. Eugene, Ore. is due to host athletics competitors from August 6-15, though World Athletics president Sebastian Coe, a two-time Olympic gold medalist and chairman of the London 2012 Olympics, is open to adjusting as needed.
"We have already had good discussions with Oregon and what I can report is Oregon are very clear that they will do whatever they can to help in our deliberations on this," Coe told Sky Sports. "No hard and fast decisions have been made. It may well be that one of the options is to move into 2022, but that's where our discussions are now taking place."
Wimbledon is expected to make a decision about its 2020 tournament next week, after the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) published a statement revealing their Main Board had called an “emergency meeting” to discuss the matter.