In a letter addressed to the US Olympic & Paralympic Committee, the CEO of USA Swimming, Tim Hinchey III has reportedly called for the Tokyo Olympics 2020 to be pushed for a year and be contested in 2021, according to a report from CNN.
Hinchey, in his letter, has addressed the need to prioritize everyone's health and safety while also recognizing the effect that the coronavirus has had on the athletes' preparation for the quadrennial event.
However, Sarah Hirshland, the CEO of US Olympic & Paralympic Committee shot down Hinchey's request and stated that the governing body has been having continuous talks with the International Olympic Committee and will rely on the IOC to take the final call.
(The IOC and International Paralympic Committee) believe that it is premature to make a final call on the date of the Games and we believe that we should afford them the opportunity to gather more data and expert advice before insisting that a decision be made.
In recent weeks, there have been multiple claims that Tokyo 2020 will be postponed owing to the scares posed by the coronavirus, but with the IOC adamant to go ahead as per schedule, it remains to be seen if the athletes will have enough time to train ahead of the event.
Checkout: the full Olympics 2020 Schedule