Pandemic Olympiad

      It is something that so many around the world look forward to on a quadrennial basis. The national pride, the inspiration we can draw from watching the world's best and, of course, NBC's famous intro music all come to mind. It is just about time to - for the second time - count down the days until the Tokyo Olympic Games begin.

     We are counting down the days until the opening ceremony and the lighting of the Olympic cauldron. But should we be counting down the days?

     After all, the COVID-19 pandemic still has not gone away. The cost of the Olympics and the ever-present health risks associated with staging the games have raised discontent in Japan.

    So there are two existential questions that burn in my mind even brighter than the Olympic flame itself. Question 1, will the Games happen this summer, after being postponed a year ago? Question 2, should they go forward?

     We had better start with the first question. 

     The International Olympic Committee has made it clear that they will not postpone the Olympics a second time, presenting a weird sort of do-or-die situation. If the Games do not proceed as currently scheduled later this summer, the plan, as of right now at least, is that they will not happen at all.

     This would be such a terrible pill to swallow. Tragically, so many people cannot get themselves to look beyond the large salaries, the superhuman athletic abilities, the surreal intellect and the larger than life personalities that athletes have, to realize that these athletes - as extraordinary as they are - are human beings. They too experience emotion. These athletes that have trained for their entire lives for this moment - many of whom have never gotten this opportunity before and may never get this chance again - and they have earned this moment.

     These feelings, and the moral pressure that these emotions evoke, will certainly weigh heavily on the minds of the individuals tasked with the unenviable decision on whether the Games should go forward or not.

     But there is another crucial perspective to factor into this equation: that of the Japanese public.

     Opposition to the Olympics has been rising in Japan, where COVID-19 cases are once again surging and where various states of emergency will run close to the start date of the Olympics. The angst that the public feels comes in spite of the assurances that the IOC has attempted to give to athletes as well as locals.

     Attending these Olympics will not be an option for international travelers. There will be no foreign spectators permitted in person this summer. It cannot be said definitively if the Games will go on in a bubble, similar to that used by the NBA, WNBA, NHL, MLS and NWSL last summer, but such seems to be growing increasingly likely. The IOC is also mobilizing scores of healthcare professionals that will handle all of the various COVID-related duties.

     As far as the IOC is concerned, the closed-door concept would be in order to keep the virus out of the Olympic Village and allow for an event that is free from pandemic-related interruptions. Such is their disposition privately. Publicly, the idea is to keep this nasty virus away from the Japanese public that has fought ferociously to keep the virus under control.

     All of this being taken into consideration, do I believe that the Olympics will go forward this summer?

     Yes, because sports are business and businesses love money.

     I believe that there are too many dollars poured into the Olympic Games by the broadcast rights holders as well IOC sponsors. The Committee has stated their belief that the Olympics can go ahead as planned. A cancellation would, without question, cost the aforementioned groups millions of dollars. Knowing that the IOC themselves believed that the event could still go on would lead to frustration from those financially involved. These hard feelings could lead to irreparable damage between the IOC, its sponsors and its media rights holders.

     This is a relationship that the International Olympic Committee cannot afford to let fall into a state of disrepair. So, I believe that organizers, both locally as well as internationally, will follow the money and proceed with these Olympics.

     The second question can be considered to be more of an ethical dilemma. SHOULD these Olympics proceed this summer?

     With respect to those who take the other side of this debate, I believe that they should, but only under the right set of circumstances.

     The IOC has stated the desire that as many athletes as possible arrive in Tokyo having received their full COVID-19 vaccination. The hope is that the vaccine, coupled with at least a semi-closed setting, will make it so this sporting spectacle is not a COVID super spreader.

    While I do understand the opposition to the Games, I do believe that they can and should go forward in a controlled environment and the athletes, coaches, officials and media members who make the trip need to be ready to meet all requirements that will be placed before them.

     The Olympics have become a very contentious event. Later this summer, I will share my opinions on the costs and the general pros and cons to hosting the Olympic Games. This summer could be a big summer for the future of the Olympics. The IOC simply must get this event right or their credibility could be permanently tarnished. But until the final decision is made, all that we can do is wait and wonder.