A senior official with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) believes a postponement of this summer's Olympics is imminent.
Canadian Dick Pound, in an interview with USA Today's Christine Brennan, said the IOC would postpone the Olympics until next year. The Games are scheduled for July 24 to August 9 in Tokyo.
"On the basis of the information, the IOC has, the postponement has been decided," Pound told the paper. "The parameters going forward have not been determined, but the Games are not going to start on July 24, that much I know."
Pound said he expects an announcement to be official within the next few weeks, once a plan to move forward has been discussed.
"We will postpone this and begin to deal with all the ramifications of moving this, which are immense," said Pound.
The statement contradicts previous assurances from the IOC and the Tokyo 2020 organizing committee that the Games will go on as scheduled. However, Canada and Australia announced Sunday evening that they would not send athletes to Tokyo.
IOC President Thomas Bach said Sunday night that he would use the next four weeks to decide what will become of the Tokyo Games, though he did say that cancelling the Games is out of the question.
Pound, 78, is a former Olympic swimmer, having competed for Team Canada at the 1960 Summer Games in Rome. He is the current chairman of Olympic Broadcasting Services. Pound has also been a president of the Canadian Olympic Committee and a vice-president with the IOC.