Yasufumi Kanemaru, President of the Japanese Handball Association (AHJ), Hidenori Miyamoto, Secretary General of the AHJ, Adam Yuki Baig, player of Zeekstar Tokyo, Yuto Agarie, captain of the Japanese national team, and Thierry Omeyer, General Manager of Paris Saint-Germain Handball, met at Japan Sport Olympic Square in Tokyo on Tuesday 21 May to announce the plans for the Japan Tour 2024., , , , For the second year running, Luka Karabatic and his team-mates will be preparing for their new sea.
The World Athletics Championships Tokyo 25 reached an important milestone on Friday as the founding board meeting of the local organising committee was held to elect Mitsugi Ogata as its president
At long last, the Tokyo Olympics have begun japantimes.co.jp - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from japantimes.co.jp Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Photo: PHOTOSPORT
Yet the message from the International Olympic Committee, local organisers and the Japanese government has been consistent full speed ahead to the opening ceremony on July 23.
Their stance might appear counter-intuitive to those still struggling with daily deaths and hardship caused by the pandemic, but there has been a noticeable lack of dissent from the sporting community.
That is a contrast to last year when the voices of athletes and sports officials were at the forefront of a groundswell of opinion that led to a 12-month delay for the Games.
With IOC President Thomas Bach having made it clear another postponement is not an option, cancellation would be the only alternative to proceeding.
Cancelling this year s Olympic Games remains on the cards concedes a senior Japanese ruling party official.
Toshihiro Nikai, secretary-general of the Liberal Democratic Party, said Japan might have to give up on the Tokyo Olympics if rising coronavirus cases in the country made the event impossible ,
Kyodo news agency has reported. If it s a situation that s absolutely impossible, we need to make a decision without hesitation, he said.
Mr Nikai questioned what the meaning of the Olympics would be if the Games ended up spreading the virus.
Tokyo s National Olympic Stadium
Photo: PHOTOSPORT
Mr Nikai is known for his frank comments. Many other ruling party politicians have avoided discussing the hot issue of a possible cancellation.