Head of UK Athletics: Call off the Olympic Games now to 'remove the stress' of uncertainty from athletes

The chairman of UK Athletics, Nic Coward, has become the first senior figure in British sports administration to voice his belief that the Olympics should be called off now to “remove the stress” from athletes’ whose lives and training have been affected by the coronavirus outbreak. The International Olympic Committee and its president Thomas Bach have come under increasing pressure this week for being slow to publicly acknowledge that Tokyo 2020 might need to be postponed, and for encouraging athletes to continue training despite the cancellation of a wave of qualifying events and the social-distancing measures being imposed in many countries. Olympic pole vault champion Katerina Stefanidi of Greece accused the IOC of leaving athletes "at risk”, while Britain’s world heptathlon champion Katarina Johnson-Thompson said the IOC's line was not compatible with the reality for athletes. Asked whether he felt the Games should be called off, Coward told The Daily Telegraph: “Yes, it seems to be absolutely what has to happen.” Coward added that he did not want to be seen to be telling the IOC or Tokyo 2020 organisers what to do.