By AFPMore by this AuthorPostponing the Tokyo 2020 Olympics will provide a welcome boost to the coronavirus-hit Japanese economy next year, a senior International Olympic Committee (IOC) official claimed on Thursday. With tens of thousands dying around the world from the coronavirus, the IOC and Japan last month took the historic decision to delay the Olympics by one year, with an Opening Ceremony planned for July 23, 2021. Japan, the world's third-largest economy, is no exception, but IOC official John Coates told reporters holding the Games in 2021 could be a "very positive opportunity for an economic stimulus" that could "kickstart the economy again." Organisers have stressed they are working towards a new Opening Ceremony on July 23, 2021 but Tokyo 2020 CEO Toshiro Muto has admitted uncertainty over the global impact of coronavirus. There is "no Plan B," Tokyo 2020 spokesman Masa Takaya told reporters at an online briefing on Tuesday.

Source: Daily Nation April 16, 2020 11:26 UTC