Saturday, Jan. 23 marks six months until the Tokyo Olympic Games, which were postponed last year due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Some of the United States’ top athletes, including gymnast Simone Biles, competitive swimmer Katie Ledecky, freestyle swimmer Caeleb Dressel, swimmer Simone Manuel and track and field competitor Noah Lyles, will be looking to make history.
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Athletes have had to be resourceful with training since many competitions have been cancelled or postponed.
And with the pandemic still creating uncertainty about the summer games, three-time Olympic swimmer and gold medalist Peter Vanderkaay said that the athletes should still focus on training.
“For the athletes, you have to take the approach that it’s on. There’s no harm in going 100% toward preparation for the games. If it doesn’t happen, it’s obviously a big disappointment. But I don’t think it’s wasted effort,” he said.
Vanderkaay is hopeful the postponed summer Olympics will still take place amid the pandemic, even without spectators.
Tokyo Olympics Q&A: 6 months out and murmurs of cancellation
The Tokyo Olympics are to open in six months on July 23, and organizers have no public program planned to mark the milestone.
There is too much uncertainty for that right now.
Tokyo and other parts of Japan are under an emergency order because of surging coronavirus cases with about 4,500 deaths attributed to COVID-19.
Instead of a countdown celebration, the focus is on the virus and speculation around the Olympics being canceled. Should they take place during a spreading pandemic — vaccine or no vaccine? Organizers say they will with exact details yet to be revealed.
