Could Tokyo Olympics Turn Into the “Disney” Olympics?

 by Ray Keating

Analysis/Commentary

DisneyBizJournal.com

January 30, 2021

 

The Tokyo Summer Olympics Games were supposed to happen in 2020. But COVID-19 had different ideas. Now, the Tokyo 2020 Olympics are scheduled to open on July 23, 2021. But questions swirl as to whether or not Tokyo will be able to pull it off, and whether or not the Japanese people actually want it to happen. 

 

That, in turn, has led to speculation in certain circles that the Olympics could find their way to Orlando. Could the Tokyo Olympics become the “Disney” Olympics? That’s highly – and I mean highly – unlikely.

Concerns and speculation about the Games have flourished due to a combination of a spike in COVID-19; emergence of new virus strains; a slow rollout of vaccines; and polls earlier this month pointing to significant opposition or doubts about the Games among the Japanese. As AP reported, “More than 80% of people in Japan who were surveyed in two polls in the last few days say the Tokyo Olympics should be canceled or postponed, or say they believe the Olympics will not take place.”

 

The Tokyo Games would mean the arrival of some 15,000 athletes and thousands more related personnel and media. That makes lots of people uneasy, to say the least, during this pandemic.

 

Of course, when there’s trouble, you can usually count on politicians stepping in to either make matters worse, or to take advantage of the circumstances somehow. Hence, we have Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis ginning up attention by offering Orlando as an option for the Summer Games. After all, there was the NBA bubble, so why not the Olympics? And lots of people come to the area, so why not the Olympics – and on very short notice without any money or planning? Make sense? Not really. But what the heck, this is politics, right?

 

For good measure, as noted by The Wall Street Journal, the Japanese and the Olympics are looking to the U.S., including President Biden, to give assurance that the U.S. Olympic team, and therefore, NBC Olympics television money, will be supporting and attending the Games. And given that Japan is a key U.S. ally, it’s highly unlikely that the president would pull the rug out from under Tokyo hosting the Olympics, in particular, by warming up to the Olympics being moved to Orlando.

 

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) apparently isn’t prepared with an alternative plan for putting on the Games this summer. So, the options seem to be to hold the Games in July, or perhaps a slight delay, in Tokyo; officially cancel the 2020 Games; or push them to the other side of the 2022 Winter Olympics.

 

So, while a Disney Olympics in 2020 seem more about political grandstanding than being a serious option, the IOC faces some serious challenges and decisions. 

 

Oh, yeah, and by the way, the 2022 Winter Games are scheduled for a year from now in Beijing, China. That’s right, China. Human rights abuses already are raising questions about those games. Also, I’m pretty sure that Orlando isn’t equipped to host the Winter Games.

 

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Ray Keating is the editor, publisher and economist for DisneyBizJournal.com, and author of the  Pastor Stephen Grant novels and assorted nonfiction books. Have Ray Keating speak your group, business, school, church, or organization. Email him at raykeating@keatingreports.com.

 

The views expressed here are his own – after all, no one else should be held responsible for this stuff, right?

 

Keating’s new book Vatican Shadows: A Pastor Stephen Grant Novel is the 13th thriller/mystery in the Pastor Stephen Grant series. Get the paperback or Kindle edition at Amazon, or signed books at www.raykeatingonline.com. 

 

You also can order his book Behind Enemy Lines: Conservative Communiques from Left-Wing New York  from Amazon or signed books  at RayKeatingOnline.com. His other recent nonfiction book is Free Trade Rocks! 10 Points on International Trade Everyone Should Know. 

 

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