The addition of “together” to the Olympic motto has been approved by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). At the 138th IOC session on Tuesday, the move to implement “together” to the Olympic motto of “faster, higher, stronger” was unanimously approved.
According to Xinhua, Thomas Bach proposed it after his re-election as IOC president during the virtual 137th IOC Session in March. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Bach reiterated his commitment to organizing the Tokyo Olympics, saying that canceling the Games was “never an option.”
“Cancellation was never an option for us: the IOC never abandons the athletes,” Bach said at the 138th IOC Session on Tuesday. At the beginning of the pandemic outbreak last year, we were faced with a decision: cancel or postpone.”
Between them, there was nothing. Either the Olympic Games could have been cancelled or postponed. The easy way out for us would have been to cancel. However, cancelling was never an option for us,” he explained.
“As a result, we made the historic decision to postpone the Olympic Games. The one certainty we had was that instead of cashing in on the insurance, we’d have to pay far more to make these Olympic Games a reality.”
“There was no blueprint to follow. This has never been done before.” According to Bach, the IOC has set three aims for the postponed Olympic Games: organizing them, assisting the Olympic community in resolving the crisis and emphasizing the importance of sport in society.
“We established the basic concept that the Olympic Games must be safe and secure for all participants. This principle is still valid today “Bach made a point. He also discussed the challenges that local organizers encountered in advancing the Games.
“It was necessary to analyze and renew tens of thousands of contracts.
All 42 sports venues, as well as the Olympic Village, had to be secured.
In the context of reduced Olympic Games, adjusting staff numbers and adapting tasks.”
Everyone in Tokyo, according to Bach, has firsthand experience with COVID-19 countermeasures. This includes everything from visa requirements to testing, social distancing, contact tracing, and more.
The IOC set up a financial envelope of up to 800 million US dollars to make the postponed Olympic Games happen. 650 million of which is related to the costs of organizing the postponed Olympic Games and 150 million as an aid package for the Olympic Movement will enable everyone to participate in the Olympic Games.
Bach also highlighted the importance of confidence and trust in overcoming the issue. He highlighted unity and digitalization as two examples of lessons learned and implemented through the Olympic Agenda 2020+5.
