Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games postponed

The Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games have been postponed until 2021 as a result of the Corona Virus outbreak; read British Shooting’s statement here!

The International Olympic Committee and International Paralympic Committee today confirmed it is to postpone the Tokyo 2020 Games until 2021.

British Shooting released the following statement on its website: “British Shooting, along with the BOA, BPA and UK Sport welcomes the very difficult decision that has been made as a result of the Coronavirus outbreak.

“The unprecedented and unpredictable spread of the disease is now impacting nearly every country in the world. The health and well-being of human life must always be our number one priority and staging a sporting event of any kind during this pandemic is simply not possible.

“Our thoughts remain with the families and individuals affected by COVID-19, as well as the front-line workers – including many health care professionals from the UK sports’ network – who are working to keep our communities safe and well.

“We also sympathise with the many hundreds of athletes, both in the UK and globally, whose careers and personal ambitions are being impacted after many years of hard work and training.

“British Shooting remains committed to taking our Olympic and Paralympic athletes to Tokyo for the next edition of the summer Games, at the appropriate time, in the hope that it will be a celebration of the world re-emerging from this unprecedented time.

“Work still needs to be undertaken with all stakeholders to determine the exact dates for next year’s Olympic and Paralympic Games. However, the Games will be held at a date beyond 2020 but no later than the summer of 2021.

“We will now await more information from the IOC and IPC in terms of a new date for the Games. This will be followed by communication from the ISSF and WSPS to identify how the new qualification pathway will work and what that means for British Shooting’s athletes.

“We understand there will be multiple questions regarding the impact of this decision which we will be working to address and update you on as the situation evolves. We appreciate your full understanding during this unprecedented time.”

Please keep an eye on the British Shooting website for further updates, and remember to stay indoors.