Olympic gold medalist Chad le Clos has joined the call for the Tokyo 2020 Games to be postponed as the Covid-19 pandemic grips the globe.
International Olympic Committee (IOC) chief Thomas Bach and Japan’s Prime
Minister Shinzo Abe have been adamant that they will continue with the 24 July - 9 August event.
Olympic Committee members from the UK, the USA, Slovenia and Norway have teamed up with a host of concerned athletes.
However, they have seen little compromise from the organiser, who have spend over £10bn on planning, with Bach insisting it was too early for a decision but he has also told the New York Times they are “considering different scenarios” but no outright cancellation.
PANDEMIC: Japan in crisis. Picture: Supplied.
But Le Clos has now revealed just how tough training has been since having to flee from Turkey before their coronavirus shutdown.
He tells a Sunday newspaper: “There’s no real plan going forward. I have no coach, no training partners. I could be stuck here until the Olympics.
“If they shut the gyms here, I don’t have a plan B [for a pool]. It’s scary. I’ve spoken to some guys literally stuck in their homes. They can’t do training.
%%%twitter https://twitter.com/hashtag/coronavirus?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#coronavirusas Canada says it would not send athletes to Tokyo if the Games went ahead as scheduled on 24 July.
Sky's @SiobhanRobbins has the latest.
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The four-time Olympic medalist adds: “I urge everyone to focus as if the Olympics is going to happen. If it gets postponed all the hard work you’ve done will continue to whenever it’s held.”