Tokyo 2020 marathon, race walk events rescheduled after Sapporo move

TOKYO (Reuters) – The women’s marathon at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and all the race walks have been rescheduled, following the controversial decision taken in October to move the events out of the capital 800 kilometers north to the city of Sapporo.

Tokyo 2020 organizers announced the rescheduling on Wednesday, following discussions with the International Olympic Committee and World Athletics, to ease the burden on National Olympic Committees and athletes traveling to northern Japan.

It now means that all the marathon and race walk events are scheduled to be held on four consecutive days, from August 6 to 9, with the men’s marathon remaining on the final day of the Games, as per tradition.

“Athletes’ health and well-being are always at the heart of our concerns, and the decision to move the marathon and race walk events to Sapporo shows how seriously we take such concerns,” the IOC’s Athletes’ Commission chair, Kirsty Coventry, said in a statement.

Both marathons will…