People wearing face masks chat next to the Olympic Rings in Tokyo, Japan
The postponed Tokyo 2020 Olympics will be cancelled if the coronavirus pandemic isn't brought under control by next year, said the organizing committee's president.
The pandemic has already forced a year-long delay of the Games, which are now scheduled to open on July 23, 2021, but Tokyo 2020 president Yoshiro Mori said no further postponement was possible.
A man with a face mask against the spread of the new coronavirus walks in front of Miraitowa and Someity, mascots for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and Paralympics at a park in Tokyo
In an interview with Japan's Nikkan Sports daily, Mori was categorical when asked if the Olympics could be delayed until 2022 if the pandemic remains a threat next year, replying: "No."
"In that case, it's cancelled," Mori said.
Mori said the Games had been cancelled previously only during wartime and compared the battle against coronavirus to "fighting an invisible enemy".
If the virus is successfully contained, "we'll hold the Olympics in peace next summer", he added. "Mankind is betting on it."
Under heavy pressure from athletes and sports associations, Japanese organizers and the International Olympic Committee agreed in March to a year-long postponement of the Games.
Organizers and Japanese officials have said the delayed Olympics will be a chance to showcase the world's triumph over the coronavirus, but questions have arisen about whether even a year's postponement is sufficient.
People wearing face masks chat next to the Olympic Rings in Tokyo, Japan
A man with a face mask against the spread of the new coronavirus walks in front of Miraitowa and Someity, mascots for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and Paralympics at a park in Tokyo
If the virus is successfully contained, "we'll hold the Olympics in peace next summer", he added. "Mankind is betting on it."
