Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- The Olympic Games in Tokyo will be held regardless of the situation with the coronavirus pandemic. This was stated by the vice-president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) John Coates, whose commentary is quoted by AFP.

The Tokyo Olympics were supposed to take place from 24 July to 9 August 2020. However, due to the coronavirus pandemic, the competition was postponed for a year and will be held from 23 July to 8 August 2021.

Coates, who also heads the IOC’s coordinating commission for the Tokyo Olympics, said the competition would be “with or without coronavirus”. “It will be the Games that defeated COVID-19, the light at the end of the tunnel,” Coates said.

In June, the organizing committee of the Tokyo Games officially spoke in favor of simplifying the format of the competition next year. It is planned that they will be organized on the basis of three basic principles - ensuring a safe environment, minimizing costs necessary for understanding on the part of Tokyo residents, and simplifying the format of the Games in order to make them safer.