WHO says it fully supports decision to postpone 2020 Olympics

The World Health Organization (WHO) fully supported the decision to postpone the Tokyo 2020 Olympics in Japan due to concerns about the spread of the coronavirus, it said on Wednesday.

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO director general, said it had been a "difficult but wise decision" taken so as to safeguard the health of athletes and spectators.

"We provide public health advice. The decision to postpone the Olympics was made by the IOC and the Japanese government, wholely and solely," Michael Ryan, WHO's top emergencies expert told a news conference. "But we fully support that decision."