South Korean athletes who've already qualified for the Tokyo Summer Games won't have to do so again, even though the competition has been postponed, their national Olympic committee said Wednesday. The Korean Sport & Olympic Committee (KSOC) said International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach assured leaders of national Olympic bodies last week that athletes would not be required to requalify even if the Olympics were rescheduled. Faced with the global coronavirus pandemic, t

The postponement of the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics will mean different things to different athletes. For several South Korean male football players, it may mean the loss of a career-altering opportunity. The quadrennial competition has been pushed back to next year due to the coronavirus outbreak. The International Olympic Committee still has long ways to go before finalizing the details of the qualifying processes for different sports. No matter which direction the IOC takes, perhaps no spo

South Korean volleyball star Kim Yeon-koung had long anticipated that the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics would be postponed, amid the global coronavirus pandemic. But expecting it to happen was one thing; hearing the news of the postponement late Tuesday was something else. Kim admitted she was still caught a bit off guard, but the women's national team captain tried to take it all in stride. "Obviously, because of the virus, it's difficult to live a normal life anywhere in the world,"

The South Korean national Olympic body is taking a wait-and-see approach in its buildup for the Tokyo Olympics, which may well be postponed due to the global coronavirus pandemic. Following an Executive Board meeting Sunday in Lausanne, Switzerland, the International Olympic Committee said it will step up its "scenario-planning" for Tokyo 2020, with changes to the start date of the competition among the possibilities. The IOC's decision is expected within the next four weeks. The IO

TORONTO (AP) -- The Canadian Olympic Committee says it won't send athletes to the Tokyo Games unless they're postponed for a year, becoming the first country to threaten such a move in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. The committee sent out a statement Sunday evening saying it was willing to help the IOC search for alternatives, but that it was not safe for athletes, "their families and the broader Canadian community for athletes to continue training for these Games." &quo

TOKYO (AFP) -- Postponing the Olympics over the coronavirus pandemic may become "inevitable", Japan's prime minister conceded Monday, after the International Olympic Committee said a delay was being considered as pressure grows from athletes and sports bodies. The comments from Shinzo Abe were his first acknowledgement that the 2020 Games may not open as scheduled on July 24, as the coronavirus marches across the globe causing unprecedented chaos. Canada's Olympic and Paralympic com

HIGASHIMATSUSHIMA (AFP) -- The Olympic flame arrived in Japan to a scaled-down welcoming ceremony Friday as doubts grew over whether the Tokyo Games will go ahead on schedule with the coronavirus pandemic causing chaos around the world. As the flame, enclosed in a special lantern, landed on a charter flight, a Japanese Olympic Committee member broke ranks to call for a postponement and Olympics chief Thomas Bach admitted "different scenarios" were under consideration. "Of cours

LAUSANNE (AFP) -- The International Olympic Committee will hold high-level talks on Tuesday, as doubts grow over the Tokyo Games and with some in Japan urging officials not to risk lives by pressing ahead during the coronavirus emergency. While countries across Europe have gone into full lockdown after the continent was declared the new epicentre of the deadly virus by the World Health Organization, no decision is expected yet on a possible postponement, or indeed cancellation, of this summer'

TOKYO (AFP) -- Doubts are growing in Japan about the Tokyo Olympics, with growing opposition to holding them as scheduled and some urging officials not to risk lives by pressing ahead during the coronavirus emergency. Officials like Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and International Olympic Committee chief Thomas Bach have repeatedly insisted preparations should continue to light the Olympic flame on July 24. But with events from the Premier League to NBA basketball scrapped, and Japanese s

TOKYO (AFP) -- Japanese government officials insisted Friday they have no plans to alter the Olympics, including holding it without spectators, after US President Donald Trump proposed a delay over the coronavirus. The fate of the 2020 Games, scheduled to open in Tokyo on July 24, has been thrown into doubt by the outbreak of the virus, now dubbed a pandemic. But organisers, Japanese government officials and the International Olympic Committee have insisted preparation for the Games is on tra

TOKYO (AFP) -- Cancelling the 2020 Olympics is "unthinkable" although the classification of the coronavirus as a pandemic will likely have some impact on the Games, the Tokyo city governor said on Thursday. "It can't be said that the announcement of a pandemic would have no impact... But I think cancellation is unthinkable," Yuriko Koike told reporters. Doubts are increasingly being raised over whether the Olympics can be held as scheduled from July 24 to August 9. Organ

TOKYO (AP) -- Despite the spreading virus, Tokyo Olympic organizers have finally held a test event. The recent outbreak of the coronavirus has forced them to cancel or postpone several. But they allowed a sport climbing event on Friday to go ahead, with a few restrictions: no fans and no top athletes. Instead they used amateurs to test the climbing facility. Almost all sports events and large gatherings have been shut down in Japan. Preseason baseball is being played without fans, the socce

TOKYO (AP) -- Tokyo Olympic organizers and the International Olympic Committee said Friday there is no “Plan B” for the 2020 Games, which open in just over five months and have been jolted by the outbreak of a virus in neighboring China.     The coronavirus has infected almost 64,000 people globally with  almost 1,400 deaths in China, but only one in Japan where fear is rising with so much attention focused on the outbreak.     “Certai

  TOKYO (AFP) -- Tokyo Olympic organisers stressed Thursday they are not considering scrapping the Games due to the coronavirus and blasted "irresponsible rumours" to the contrary. With only 162 days to go until the opening ceremony, concerns have been raised about Japan's hosting of the Games with the virus spreading throughout Asia. But Tokyo 2020 CEO Yoshiro Mori slapped down such concerns at a meeting with top International Olympic Committee officials. "With regards t

BELGRADE -- South Korea has squeezed past Britain 82-79 to stay alive in the Olympic women's basketball qualifying tournament. Shooting guard Kang Lee-seul made her first six 3-point field goals for a team-high 26 points, giving South Korea its first win of the four-nation competition at Aleksandar Nikolic Hall in the Serbian capital Saturday. Coached by Lee Moon-kyu, South Korea, world No. 19, nearly blew a 17-point lead in the fourth quarter but held on to beat the 18th-ranked Britain thank