Beijing 2022 planners assessing impact of postponing Tokyo

BEIJING (AP) — Organizers of the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing say they will conduct a “detailed assessment” of the impact on their plans of the decision to postpone the Tokyo Olympics to next year.

In a statement carried by the official Xinhua News Agency, Beijing 2022 organizers said they were in close communication with the International Olympic Committee to ensure the “special situation” is handled properly.

The IOC and local organizers agreed last week to push the Tokyo Games back a year because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The revised dates for Tokyo are July 23-Aug. 8, 2021. The Beijing Games are scheduled to open on Feb. 4, 2022.

Although the Summer and Winter Olympics will now be held within six months of each other, Beijing organizers say their preparations are on target and they have no plans to delay events.

“We believe the Summer Games in Tokyo and the Winter Games in Beijing will both be a success,” the statement said.

Beijing was awarded the games in 2015, beating Almaty, Kazakhstan in the voting, to become the first city to have been awarded both the Summer and Winter Olympics.

Beijing’s urban center will host indoor events such as hockey and figure skating, largely in venues used for the 2008 Summer Olympics.