I
nternational Olympic Com-
mittee (IOC) member Hayley
Wickenheiser says insisting
Tokyo 2020 will go ahead as
planned is “irresponsible”
and Olympic pole vault champion
Katerina Stefanidi has accused the
IOC of leaving athletes “at risk” with
its stance.
In a series of posts on Twitter, Wick-
enheiser – who won four Olympic
gold medals as part of the Canadian
ice hockey team – called not enter-
taining the idea of a postponement or
cancelation “insensitive and irrespon-
sible”.
Wickenheiser said “this crisis is
bigger than even the Olympics” and
that it was “terrible” some athletes
didn’t know where they could train
but were still expected to prepare for
the Games.
“To say for certain they will go
ahead is an injustice to the athletes
training and global population at
large”, she concluded.
“We need to acknowledge the
unknown.”
Those sentiments are shared by
Stefanidi.
“There is no postponement, no
cancellation. But it [the IOC] is put-
ting us at risk”, the Greek said in an
interview with Reuters.
“We all want Tokyo to happen
but what is the Plan B if it does not
happen?
“Knowing about a possible option
has a major effect on my training be-
cause I may be taking risks now that
I would not take if I knew there was
also the possibility of a Plan B.”
Stefanidi is scheduled to light a
small cauldron at the handover
ceremony for the Olympic Flame
to Tokyo 2020 officials on Thursday
(March 19).
That ceremony has already been
downsized and will take place behind
closed doors because of the COV-
ID-19 pandemic.
“From January until now the situa-
tion has deteriorated dramatically and
in the same period the IOC has re-
peated the same things”, complained
Stefanidi, who is one of 18 members
of the World Athletics Athletes’
Commission and is also standing for
election to the IOC’s equivalent.
Earlier today, the IOC said there was
no need for “any drastic decisions at
this stage” in relation to this sum-
mer’s Games despite more and more
sporting events being cancelled or
postponed.
The Opening Ceremony is due to
take place on July 24.
In addition to being frustrated at
the IOC not discussing alternatives to
the Games going ahead as planned,
Stefanidi “would like to see that there
is a concern for the risk to our health”
and is worried that it may be danger-
ous for athletes to train at present.
“The stadiums have been closed for
a week”, she explained.
“Tomorrow we may get a special
permit to get in and train.
“But how can you train there,
touching the same equipment and
surfaces?”
More than 7,900 coronavirus-related
deaths have been recorded worldwide
and three countries – Italy, Spain and
Iran – today reported more than 100
new fatalities.
Dozens of Governments have issued
travel restrictions, banned mass
gatherings and ordered people to stop
non-essential activities if they involve
leaving the house.
The sporting calendar has been se-
verely impacted and several Olympic
qualifiers and World Championships
have been postponed or cancelled,
while many of the globe’s top leagues
have been put on hold.
