Postpone the Tokyo Olympics for the sake of athletes’ safety

I call upon the National Olympic Committee of Kenya to request the IOC to postpone the forthcoming Tokyo Olympics.

The Games, if held, will put the athletes and those attending at great risk. With barely three months to go the pandemic is not showing any signs of restraint.

Although the Covid-19 vaccine has arrived and the athletes and those travelling to Tokyo will have been vaccinated and may perhaps help mitigate the spread of the disease, it is too soon for that to happen.

The lockdown necessitated by the increase of Covid-19 cases in the recent months restricts the athletes from training sufficiently for an event such as the Olympics.

With all the restrictions announced by Tokyo there will be interaction among athletes in the athletes village – in the common areas, dining room, training areas, and so on.

The risk is too great to expose the athletes to any risk. We must protect our athletes.

Also remember the Games are meant to be a get-together of the youth, and if that is not possible what does IOC or the Tokyo organisers gain by holding the event?

If despite the risks the IOC and the Tokyo organisers decide to hold the Games, NOC-K will be well advised to restrict the team to the minimum.

More so as we are going through an intensely difficult economic slowdown because of the pandemic.

Athletes and teams which do not meet international standards should be omitted.

They could be included in the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham scheduled to be held from July 26 to August 8, 2022.

Rao is an advocate and has served as Honorary Legal Advisor for the Commonwealth Games Federation