Dina Asher-Smith ‘ready and focused’ for delayed Tokyo 2020 Olympics
World 200m champion is not letting uncertainty over the Games impact her preparation
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Your support makes all the difference.Dina Asher-Smith says she is staying "ready and focused" for the delayed Tokyo 2020 Games to take place this summer.
International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach was recently forced to deny that the Games could be pushed back in the Olympic cycle or even moved to another city.
He also rejected suggestions that staging the Games, which are due to start on 23 July, amid the current coronavirus pandemic may be seen as irresponsible.
READ MORE: Olympics need Biden’s help, says organiser
Asked if a contingency needs to be put in place if the Games cannot go ahead as planned, sprinter Asher-Smith told BBC Radio 5 Live: "I will leave that to the IOC and the people who have been working extremely hard to prepare this, and are very good at their decision-making skills.
"I could say that [we need a plan B] but I know absolutely nothing about the intricacies of organising an Olympic Games.
"It is very, very easy for those on the outside to be saying what should be done, what can be done, but I don't know the economics of it, the politics of it, and I don't know how strategically it is going to work.
"From my perspective, we have to stay ready, stay focused, because this is what we have prepared for."
Following the coronavirus pandemic, Asher-Smith has not competed in an international race since winning the world 200 metres title in October 2019.
But the Brit, an Olympic bronze medallist in the 4x100m relay in Rio, will return to the track at the World Athletics Indoor Tour event in Karlsruhe, Germany, on Friday.
The 25-year-old added: "I am so excited to be back competing. It is what I love to do and I am passionate about. I feel like I have been training for an eternity preparing for this year and I cannot wait to get back out there."
PA
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