Tokyo Olympics 2020: Organising Committee CEO Toshiro Muto says coronavirus outbreak could throw 'cold water' on Games

Tokyo: The spread of a new coronavirus could throw “cold water over the growing momentum of the 2020 Games,” Tokyo Organising Committee CEO Toshiro Muto said on Wednesday. [caption id=“attachment_8004651” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Chief Executive Officer Toshiro Muto, right, and Craig Spence, head of communications of the International Paralympic Committee, at a news conference in Tokyo. AP[/caption] Japanese government officials including Prime Minister Shinzo Abe have said the government would work hard to minimise any impact from the virus outbreak on the Games, which start on 24 July. The death toll from the flu-like virus that originated in China’s central city of Wuhan has passed 490, as two US airlines suspended flights to Hong Kong following the first fatality there and 10 cases were confirmed on a quarantined Japanese cruise ship. Vaccines against the virus probably won’t be ready by the start of the Tokyo Summer Olympics, a professor who looked at health risks ahead of the Games told Reuters earlier, adding he hoped there was enough time to build defences. Saburo Kawabuchi, head of the athletes’ village for the 2020 Olympics, said he hoped the games would proceed smoothly, free from the virus. Several qualifying events including badminton and boxing have been postponed due to the virus.