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Trump floats one-year Olympic delay over coronavirus

US President Donald Trump (right) said on twitter:
US President Donald Trump (right) said on twitter: "Good things will happen for Japan and their great Prime Minister. Lots of options!" (AFP/file)
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13 Mar 2020 02:03:09 GMT9
13 Mar 2020 02:03:09 GMT9

WASHINGTON: U.S. President Donald Trump suggested Thursday that the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games may be delayed for one year due to the ongoing global spread of the new coronavirus.

"This is just my idea -- maybe they postpone it for a year," he told reporters at the White House. "Maybe they do that, if that's possible."

"I like that better than I like having empty stadiums all over the place," Trump said. "I think if you cancel it, make it a year later, that's a better alternative than doing it with no crowd."

This was the first time that the U.S. president mentioned the possibility of a postponement of the Tokyo Olympics.

He later had telephone talks with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. After that, Trump said on Twitter, "Good things will happen for Japan and their great Prime Minister. Lots of options!"

According to the Japanese government, the two leaders did not discuss a postponement of the Tokyo Games.

Abe told Trump that Japan is making efforts to hold the Tokyo Olympics after winning the fight against the virus. Trump appreciated Japan's transparent efforts, Japanese officials said.

The Tokyo Olympics are currently slated to run from late July to early August. In Japan, the number of coronavirus cases continues to rise, as well as in other parts of the world.

The World Health Organization has characterized the global spread of the COVID-19 disease as a pandemic.

Earlier this month, Trump said he would leave a decision on whether to hold the Olympics as planned or cancel the games to the Japanese leader. "It's a sad thing" if the event is called off, because the Olympic venues are beautiful and incredible, he also said at the time.

JIJI Press

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