The Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee has announced the new dates for the Tokyo Olympic Games. The Games were postponed until next year due to the global coronavirus pandemic.

According to Japanese Television NHK, at a news conference on Monday, the committee said the Tokyo Olympics will run for 17 days, from July 23, 2021. It said the Paralympics will run for 13 days, from August 24 of the same year.

The committee added that the new schedule was approved at an ad-hoc executive board meeting of the International Olympic Committee.

The new opening date is just one day different from original date of July 24 this year. This was apparently done to minimize the impact of rescheduling.

The IOC, the organizing committee, and others had been working on a new schedule since they decided last Tuesday to postpone the games by about a year says NHK.

Last Thursday, IOC President Thomas Bach held a closed telephone conference with international sports organizations and sources said at the time that Bach hoped to set new dates within three weeks. But the decision came quickly, only four days later.

With the timetable set, officials will need to prepare for the Games. Many challenges lie ahead as a result of the unprecedented postponement.