New Start Date for Olympic Torch Relay

People wearing protective face masks, following an outbreak of the coronavirus, are seen next to the Olympic rings in front of the Japan Olympic Museum in Tokyo, Japan, February 26, 2020. REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha
People wearing protective face masks, following an outbreak of the coronavirus, are seen next to the Olympic rings in front of the Japan Olympic Museum in Tokyo, Japan, February 26, 2020. REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha
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New Start Date for Olympic Torch Relay

People wearing protective face masks, following an outbreak of the coronavirus, are seen next to the Olympic rings in front of the Japan Olympic Museum in Tokyo, Japan, February 26, 2020. REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha
People wearing protective face masks, following an outbreak of the coronavirus, are seen next to the Olympic rings in front of the Japan Olympic Museum in Tokyo, Japan, February 26, 2020. REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha

The Tokyo 2020 torch relay, which was put on hold when the Olympics were delayed over the coronavirus, will start next March from Japan's Fukushima region, organizers said Monday.

The Olympic flame had already arrived in Japan from Greece and the relay was days from beginning earlier this year when organizers and Olympic officials took the historic decision to postpone the Games by 12 months.

The flame is currently on display in Tokyo.

The relay will now start on March 25, 2021, beginning in the Fukushima region hit by nuclear disaster after the 2011 earthquake and tsunami.

The relay, which will see the flame travel to all 47 prefectures of Japan, is being organized under the slogan "Hope Lights Our Way" and was intended to highlight reconstruction in areas devastated by the 2011 disaster.

"In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, it will additionally symbolize the light at the end of the dark tunnel; a beacon of hope for the world in the run-up to the Tokyo 2020 Games, themselves a symbol of the resilience, the unity and the solidarity of humankind," organizers said in a statement.

The route and the schedule for the relay will remain the same "in principle," though the statement noted that the route and celebration venues "may be reviewed in light of the Covid-19 situation."

The postponement of the Games has caused major logistical problems and extra expense for organizers.

As a result, organizers have been forced to identify a raft of cost-cutting measures, that will include smaller vehicle convoys for the torch relay and a simpler launch event.

The postponed Games are scheduled to open in Tokyo on July 23, 2021.



Napoli Passes Big Test of Serie A Leadership with 2-0 Win at AC Milan

Soccer Football - Serie A - AC Milan v Napoli - San Siro, Milan, Italy - October 29, 2024 Napoli's Khvicha Kvaratskhelia celebrates scoring their second goal REUTERS/Alessandro Garofalo
Soccer Football - Serie A - AC Milan v Napoli - San Siro, Milan, Italy - October 29, 2024 Napoli's Khvicha Kvaratskhelia celebrates scoring their second goal REUTERS/Alessandro Garofalo
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Napoli Passes Big Test of Serie A Leadership with 2-0 Win at AC Milan

Soccer Football - Serie A - AC Milan v Napoli - San Siro, Milan, Italy - October 29, 2024 Napoli's Khvicha Kvaratskhelia celebrates scoring their second goal REUTERS/Alessandro Garofalo
Soccer Football - Serie A - AC Milan v Napoli - San Siro, Milan, Italy - October 29, 2024 Napoli's Khvicha Kvaratskhelia celebrates scoring their second goal REUTERS/Alessandro Garofalo

Antonio Conte’s Napoli passed a big test of its Serie A leadership with a 2-0 win at AC Milan on Tuesday.
Romelu Lukaku and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia scored first-half goals at the San Siro and Napoli opened up a seven-point lead over defending champion Inter Milan, which visits Empoli on Wednesday, The Associated Press reported.
Lukaku muscled a defender to the ground before scoring from the center of the area early on. Then Kvaratskhelia dribbled past two defenders before launching an angled shot into the far corner before the break.
Milan center forward Alvaro Morata had a potential goal waved off for offside early in the second half.
Milan is eighth, 11 points back.
Napoli returns to the San Siro in less than two weeks to face Inter. The Partenopei have rebounded strongly after a 10th-place finish last season and are in position to earn their second title in three years.
Conte was hired in June after Napoli went through three different coaches last season.
Napoli hasn't lost since falling 3-0 at Hellas Verona in its season debut on Aug. 18.
Also, Bologna won 2-0 at Cagliari with goals from Riccardo Orsolini and Jens Odgaard; and Lecce beat nine-man Hellas Verona 1-0 with a goal from Patrick Dorgu.