IOC's Dick Pound Predicts Three-Month Window To Decide

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

The International Olympic Committee's longest-serving member, Dick Pound, told the Associated Press on Tuesday that he estimated there was a three-month window to decide the fate of the Tokyo Olympic Games if the novel Coronavirus continues to develop into a pandemic. 

If the deadline to evaluate the go-ahead for the Olympics comes in May, Pound said there would probably be no alternative but to cancel the event.

If the circumstances become more dire for Tokyo organizers, "you're probably looking at a cancellation," Pound said. 

To date, more than 80,000 people have been infected with the disease and nearly 3,000 have died.

A CDC warning issued Tuesday declared that the spread of the flu-like disease to the U.S. is inevitable.

Already, the Coronavirus in China led to the postponement of the World Athletics Indoor Championships in March to 2021.