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Tokyo 2020 Olympics

Abe softens stance on full-scale Olympics to avoid cancellation

Japan looks to hold games even if vaccine isn't widely available

A cyclist rides past a large poster featuring Tokyo 2020 Olympics mascot Miraitowa in Tokyo on June 4.   © Reuters

TOKYO -- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has repeatedly vowed to hold the Olympics in a "complete form" next summer, but those ambitions are being tamped down as he hopes to avoid the worst-case scenario: a cancellation of the event.

The International Olympic Committee's executive board meets online Wednesday to discuss the postponed Summer Games. The only two choices are holding the games in Tokyo next year as scheduled or canceling them altogether, IOC member Pierre-Olivier Beckers-Vieujant said, according to European media.

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