THE FLAME IS GOING TO REMAIN IN JAPAN UNTIL 2021.
FOR MORE ON THE POSTPONEMENT,
MR. ROKER, LOOK WHO IS HERE, OUR
GOOD FRIEND MIKE TIRICO.
>> I KNOW.
MIKE TIRICO IS HERE, OUR NBC
SPORTS ANCHOR AND, OF COURSE,
THE HOST OF THE OLYMPICS.
MIKE, GOOD MORNING.
I KNOW THIS CAN’T BE A BIG
SURPRISE OF THIS NEWS BUT WHAT
DO YOU MAKE OF IT.
>> YEAH, YOU’RE RIGHT, AL,
CRAIG, GOOD MORNING, GUYS, HODA,
EVERYONE.
EVERYONE. IT WENT DOWNHILL SO FAST AND SO
QUICKLY AS EVERYTHING HAS,
REALLY REGARDING THIS.
IF YOU GO BACK JUST A WEEK AGO
TODAY, THE U.S. OPC, UNITED
STATES OLYMPIC AND PARALYMPIC
COMMITTEE THEIR TRAINING
FACILITY IN COLORADO SPRINGS WAS
STILL OPEN.
STILL OPEN. ONCE THAT CLOSED AND OTHER
COLLEGES, UNIVERSITIES AND
PLACES WHERE U.S. OLYMPIC
ATHLETES WERE STARTING TO TRAIN,
THAT STARTED BRINGING UP THE
CONCERN CAN WE PREPARE FAIRLY
FOR THE OLYMPICS AND THEN ALL
THE OBVIOUS ISSUES THAT WOULD
COME TO PLAY WHEN YOU HAVE 200
PLUS COUNTRIES SENDING ATHLETES,
COACHES, MEDIA, ET CETERA, TO
ONE VENUE, GIVEN THE CURRENT
CLIMATE.
CLIMATE. SO THIS ALL SPIRALED VERY, VERY
QUICKLY AS PARALLELED THE
DISEASES ACROSS THE WORLD AND
LET TO INEVITABLE.
SOME FOLKS WONDERING WHY IT
DIDN’T HAPPEN SOONER.
YOU HAVE TO REMIND EVERYONE,
THIS WAS SCHEDULED FOR FOUR
MONTHS FROM NOW AND IT TAKES
SEVEN YEARS TO PUT OLYMPIC GAMES
TOGETHER.
TOGETHER. IT’S HARD TO SNAP A FINGER AND
SAY THIS ISN’T GOING TO HAPPEN.
EVENTUALLY THEY GOT TO THE RIGHT
PLACE ABOUT AS QUICKLY AS YOU
CAN IN THIS SITUATION.
>> SO MANY STAKEHOLDERS, TOO,
MIKE.
MIKE. PROBABLY ARGUABLY CHIEF AMONG
THEM, THE ATHLETES WHO HAVE BEEN
TRAINING FOR YEARS.
WHAT HAPPENS NOW IF THE OLYMPICS
ARE POSTPONED UNTIL 2021 TO
THESE ATHLETES WHO ALREADY
QUALIFY?
QUALIFY? >> IN THE STATEMENT FROM THE IOC
STATEMENT AND PRIME MINISTER ABE
OF JAPAN, THEY SAID THE OLYMPICS
WILL BE PUSHED BACK NO LATER
THAN SEPTEMBER OF 2021.
YOU START THINKING ABOUT, WHAT
DO ATHLETES DO.
LET’S THINK ABOUT PREPARATION.
WE TALKED A LOT ABOUT CURVES.
WE’VE SEEN THE VARIOUS
SCIENTISTS AND EXPERTS SHOW
CURVES INVOLVING COVID-19.
FOR AN ATHLETE, IT USUALLY GOES
LIKE THIS.
LIKE THIS. HIT THE MICROPHONE, MIKE.
IT GOES STRAIGHT UP BUILDING A
PEAK, ATHLETIC PEAK.
SO MANY ATHLETES CLOSE TO THE
PEAK AS THEY GET CLOSE TO THE
OLYMPICS FOUR MONTHS FROM TODAY.
NOW CAN THEY PLATEAU FOR THE
NEXT STRETCH, MAINTAIN WHERE
THEY ARE AND THEN START TO RAMP
UP AGAIN.
UP AGAIN. IT’S GOING TO BE REALLY HARD ON
THEM BUT THIS IS HARD ON
EVERYONE IN EVERY WALK OF LIFE
SO I THINK THEY ARE ALL
UNDERSTANDING.
UNDERSTANDING. AS YOU GUYS KNOW FROM YOUR
OLYMPIC EXPERIENCE, AL, YOU’VE
BEEN TO SO MANY MORE THAN CRAIG
AND I, THIS IS A
ONCE-IN-A-LIFETIME THING FOR SO
MANY ATHLETES.
MANY ATHLETES. FOR SO MANY OF THEM, WILL THEY
BE ABLE TO REPEAT THEIR
READINESS IN 2021 AS THEY WERE
TRYING TO GET READY FOR JULY
2020.
2020. >> MIKE, EVEN BEFORE WE WERE
GOING TO GET TO THE OLYMPICS,
THIS WAS GOING TO -- THIS LOOKS
LIKE SPRING AND SUMMER OF NO
SPORTS.
SPORTS. I KNOW YOU HAD A NUMBER OF
THINGS LIKE THE KENTUCKY DERBY
AND GOLF AND ALL SORTS OF
THINGS.
THINGS. WHAT HAPPENS -- HOW DO WE
COMPENSATE FOR THIS?
>> I’VE BEEN TALKING TO A LOT OF
MY PEERS, AL, FOLKS WHO RUN
TEAMS IN VARIOUS SPORTS.
WE’VE ALL BEEN TEXTING WITH EACH
OTHER.
OTHER. IT FELT LIKE A HERCULEAN TASK TO
GET THROUGH ONE WEEKEND WITHOUT
SPORTS, WHICH WE JUST DID.
WE’RE LOOKING AT A MONTH, TWO
MONTHS, THREE MONTHS OF ALL OF
THIS.
THIS. WILL SPORTS COME BACK AT SOME
POINT WHERE THERE ARE NO FANS IN
THE STANDS, JUST ESSENTIAL
PERSONNEL WHO HAVE ALREADY BEEN
MEDICALLY CLEARED, HAVE TESTED
NEGATIVE OR HAD THE VIRUS AND
CYCLED OUT.
CYCLED OUT. THERE ARE SO MANY UNKNOWNS.
WILL BASKETBALL AND HOCKEY
FINISH THEIR SEASON.
WILL MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL HAVE
A SEASON.
A SEASON. WILL FOOTBALL WILL IMPACTED DOWN
THE LINE.
THE LINE. I THINK ONE THING WE’RE
REALIZING WHEN WE LOOK AT ALL OF
THESE, KENTUCKY DERBY IS HOW
MUCH SPORTS MEANS TO OUR
ENTERTAINMENT, OUR ECONOMY.
THINK OF TICKET TAKERS, PEOPLE
WHO POP THE POPCORN AND WHAT IT
MEANS ALSO TO OUR SOUL.
IT’S AN ESCAPE FROM EVERYTHING
WE NORMALLY DEAL WITH MONDAY
THROUGH FRIDAY.
THROUGH FRIDAY. NOT HAVING THAT, I THINK PEOPLE
REALIZE THIS WEEKEND, IT’S NICE
TO GO BACK AND LOOK AT SOME OLD
GAMES, BUT AFTER A WHILE THAT’S
WHAT MAKES SPORTS GREAT, THE
LIVE UNKNOWN REALITY OF TV THAT
WE’RE ALL MISSING AND WE’RE
GOING TO HAVE TO GET USED TO FOR
A WHILE HERE.
>> MIKE TIRICO, THANKS FOR THE.
>> I’M ONE OF THOSE AMERICANS.
>> THANKS FOR THE INSIGHT.
>> SAME HERE.
YOU STAY SAFE, AL, TOO.
YOU AND LINDSAY KEEP US
ENTERTAINED TEACHING THE KIDS