The Summer Olympics is the biggest sporting event in the world, typically bringing more than 10,000 athletes from around the world together every four years, The New York Times reports.
It's extremely rare for the Summer or Winter Olympics to be postponed or canceled. Since 1896, when the modern Olympic Games began, it has happened only six times—and it usually requires a war.
The Olympic Games were canceled during World War I and World War II. The 1940 Summer Games, scheduled to take place in Tokyo, were moved to Helsinki , Finland due to war, and they were later canceled altogether. The current coronavirus pandemic marks the first time the competition has ever been temporarily postponed for a reason other than war.