The International Olympic Committee and Japanese government agreed to postpone the 2020 Summer Olympics "to a date beyond 2020 but not later than summer 2021" due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The decision comes four months before the scheduled Opening Ceremony on July 24. This is the first time in Olympic history that the games have been disrupted by a global health issue. "The leaders agreed that the Olympic Games in Tokyo could stand as a beacon of hope to the world during these troubled times and that the Olympic flame could become the light at the end of the tunnel in which the world finds itself at present," the IOC and Tokyo 2020 organizing committee said in a joint statement. During the delay the Olympic flame will stay in Tokyo and the 2021 games will still be called "Tokyo 2020."
TOPICS: Summer Olympics, NBC, Coronavirus, NBC Sports