International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach gestures on his arrival at a meeting with Tokyo 2020 Organizing Committee President Seiko Hashimoto at the Tokyo 2020 headquarters on July 13, 2021 in Tokyo. (Takashi Aoyama/Pool Photo via AP)

       TOKYO (Kyodo) -- International Olympic Committee chief Thomas Bach said Tuesday canceling the Tokyo Olympics was not an option, despite the coronavirus pandemic, and going ahead with the games this summer was decided in the interest of athletes preparing for the games for many years.

       "We, the IOC, will never abandon the athletes, and with the cancellation, we would have lost a whole generation of athletes. So therefore, a cancellation for us was not really an option," Bach said in an online interview with Kyodo News, referring to the decision in March last year to push back the Olympics, set to begin July 23.

       Bach also said he has supported the decision last week to bar spectators from almost all Olympic venues with a "heavy heart" as "the foremost principle is the safety and security for everybody."

       While Tokyo has been under a coronavirus state of emergency due to surging infections, the IOC president said he will "not speculate" on what could happen if the COVID-19 situation drastically worsens during the Olympics, which will run through Aug. 8.

       The opening ceremony at the National Stadium will be "very emotional," the 67-year-old said, because it will be the first time since the pandemic that "you will see the whole world in one place."

       He said the Japanese people do not have to be afraid of the safety of the games, given that athletes and Olympic officials from overseas will be separated from the public.

       He also said he is hoping to visit the cities of Sapporo and Fukushima, where Olympic venues are located, during his time in Japan.

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