So far, the IOC has resisted calls from several high-profile athletes, coaches, and even athletics associations, to postpone the games in light of the current coronavirus pandemic. In the latest twist, the IOC has flatly rejected the idea of cancellation but is expected to take a decision on whether to postpone the Games, set to start on July 24.
Mills, however, admits that he cannot see the event being staged before next year, following the already massive disruptions to the schedule.
"I can’t see the Olympics going ahead; taking persons from all over the world and bringing them to one central point,” Mills said in a recent interview with Reuters.
"My recommendation would be to postpone the Olympics until next year,” he said.
“This would be unprecedented, but we are in unprecedented time. Move everything up one year and then everything will eventually fall back in place,” he added.
"But I don’t think that the Olympics will take place at the time that is specified (July and August) because the outbreak is worldwide and, in some countries,, it is just starting to accelerate.”
The Olympics has only been canceled on three occasions 1916, 1940 and 1944 in all those cases the scrapping of the Games was due to World wars I and II.
The 30-year-old athlete had previously hinted at retirement after narrowly failing to qualify for last year’s Doha World Championships. On that occasion, the Pan Am Games silver medalist pointed to several factors that influenced her consideration, chiefly among them was a lack of available funding.
Despite the change of heart regarding her decision to continue competing for the tiny island nation, the funding issues remain.
“It is what it is at this point. My husband and I spoke and he took out a personal loan to fund me and to make sure that I have whatever I need for funding so that was one of the biggest reasons why I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to even train, I knew I would not have been able to do it on the funding [from NOC],” Loomis told the Antigua Observer in a recent interview.
The Antigua and Barbuda National Olympic Committee (NOC) assists with the funding of elite athletes that compete for the country. The stipend is believed to be in the region of $US 1000 per month. Loomis, however, seems to deem the amount to not just be insufficient but more significantly not always disbursed on time.
“I know I am not the only athlete that had minimal funding and so when we sat down and put our numbers out I had to take a step back a little bit from my business, which my clients were totally okay with. So I worked four days per month to help with the rent where I lived, to train and then my husband took out the personal loan for the rest of the year to get me what I need in terms of clothing, shoes, medicine, gear, nutrition and all that.”
