Delay for Tokyo Olympics 'feasible,' says organising member

If the Olympics can't be held in Tokyo this summer due to the global outbreak of the coronavirus, a delay of one or two years would be "feasible," a Tokyo Olympic Committee member told Reuters.

Libby Hogan reports.

If the coronavirus makes the Tokyo Olympics impossible to hold this summer, an organising official said a one to two year delay is realistic and also said a cancel would be too costly.

Up until now the Tokyo Olympic Committee has been tight lipped not making a call about postponing or cancelling the Games due to begin July 24 despite speculation swirling.

The official - Haruyuki Takahashi - told Reuters the Tokyo organizing committee has started to work on scenarios for how the virus could affect the Games.

He says the financial damage from cancelling Games or holding them without spectators would be too great.

On Tuesday (March 10) officials again insisted the Olympics would not be called off.

(SOUNDBITE) (Japanese) JAPANESE ECONOMIC REVITALIZATION MINISTER, YASUTOSHI NISHIMURA, SAYING: "At this time, we are not thinking about cancelling or postponing the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics at all.

So there is no truth in (suggestions) that we are considering (measures) if that happens.

I am not considering such a thing at all." The latest budget for the Tokyo 2020 Games stands at nearly 13 billion U.S. dollars Japan's government pitched in more than one billion to build the Olympic Stadium alone.

Experts say a one-year postponement to the same time next year would pose major logistical problems but was doable for broadcasters because of their generally open summer schedule.

Ultimately, the final decision belongs to the International Olympic Committee chief, Thomas Bach.

Japan has reported nearly 1,300 cases, including about 700 from a cruise ship that was quarantined near Tokyo last month.

On Tuesday public broadcaster NHK said Japan saw 59 new cases, the biggest number of infections in a single day.