Tokyo, Jan 21 (IANS): International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach pledged on Thursday that the Tokyo Olympics will be held as scheduled. Bach said that IOC is committed to conducting the Games and has "no plan B" although scepticism over the feasibility of the Olympics has increased both in Japan and overseas because of the rise in Covid-19 cases.

Bach assured hosts Japan that IOC firmly believes the Tokyo Olympics will open on July 23 in the Olympic stadium. "This is why there is no plan B and this is why we are fully committed to making these games safe and successful," he said, Xinhua news reports.

Dick Pound, the IOC's longest-serving member, also backtracked on his previous comments, claiming that the postponed Tokyo Olympic Games will be held in the summer.

The 78-year-old Canadian said on January 8 that he was not "certain" that the Tokyo Games would take place.

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga has consistently vowed to host the Games as scheduled but former foreign minister Taro Kono, now the minister for administrative and regulatory reform, said earlier that anything can happen.

Kono said that the Olympics "could go either way", and called on the IOC for "Plan B, Plan C". Takeshi Niinami, an economic advisor to Suga, said that a decision could be made by end of March.