So why isn't Japan considering canceling the Olympics? The response, it turns out, is not so straightforward.

In Japan, things are not looking well.

As cases of the coronavirus continue to grow, a state of emergency has been declared in Tokyo and three other major prefectures.

Despite the fact that health experts and public opinion are against the Games, there has been no mention of them being canceled.

While recent polls in Japan show that nearly 70% of the population opposes the Olympics, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) remains adamant that the event will take place.

Japan has long maintained that the Olympics, which were supposed to take place last summer, will be held and would be secure.

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, on the other hand, seemed to bow to public pressure earlier this week, stating that the government would "not put the Olympics first" - but that the final decision would rest with the IOC.

The IOC makes the final decision.

The arrangement between the IOC and the host city Tokyo is simple: there is only one article about cancellation, and it only applies to the IOC, not the host city.

This is because the Olympic Games are the "exclusive property" of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), according to international sports lawyer Alexandre Miguel Mestre. The IOC, as the "keeper" of the Games, has the authority to terminate the deal.

Apart from war or civil unrest, one justification given for cancellation is if "the IOC has fair grounds to conclude, in its absolute discretion, that the safety of players in the Games will be seriously endangered or jeopardized for any reason whatsoever." The pandemic, in certain ways, may be viewed as such a hazard.

According to Mestre, the Olympic charter also requires the IOC to ensure "athlete fitness" and encourage "healthy sports," but despite this, the IOC seems set on proceeding.

Is it possible for Japan to defy the IOC and withdraw?

"If Japan were to unilaterally terminate the contract under different provisions within this host city arrangement, then by and wide, the costs and losses will fall on the local organizing committee," said Professor Jack Anderson of the University of Melbourne.

The contract is fairly standard, according to the sports law specialist, and Tokyo understood exactly what it was getting into. What it didn't realize was that a global pandemic would be involved.

"Contracts can account for certain contingencies," he said, "but the essence of the current situation is clearly unparalleled."

"The Olympics are the most important sporting event on the calendar; billions of dollars are at stake for both Japan and the International Olympic Committee in terms of broadcasting sponsorship." It's a massive occurrence with massive contractual commitments on both sides."

As a result, the only possible scenario is for Japan and the IOC to pull the plug together in accordance with their deal.

If that happens, insurance will be necessary: the IOC has insurance, the local organizing committee has insurance, and numerous broadcasters and sponsors will have insurance as well.

"It's probably fair to assume that if the Tokyo Olympics are postponed, it will almost certainly be the largest insurance payout case of its kind," Prof Anderson said.

Insurance will cover the organizers' direct costs, but not all of the indirect costs incurred by investments made around the country in anticipation of the spectacle - for example, hotels and restaurants that could have undergone upgrades in anticipation of the expected influx of visitors.

It's been a bumpy road: the games were delayed from last year, the torch relay was interrupted, foreign fans won't be able to attend, and now events will be held in empty stadiums.

Few athletes have spoken out about the issue, and they are most likely conflicted about it. The Olympics are what those who make it have been training for years.

Around the same time, in the midst of a global pandemic, there is a concern for personal and public health.

Tennis champion Naomi Osaka, Japan's most popular athlete, was one of the few to participate in the debate, but she only expressed cautious reservations.

She said this week, "Of course, I want the Olympics to happen." "However, I believe there is a lot of important stuff going on right now, particularly in the last year."

"For me, if it puts people in danger... then it should certainly be a debate, which I believe it is right now." I'm just an athlete at the end of the day, and there's a pandemic going on."

The US track and field team canceled its pre-Olympics training camp in Japan earlier this week due to safety issues. Even the governor of the province that would have hosted the team said that "in the present situation, they made the best decision possible."

Many of those involved in organizing the Games have shown the same level of apprehension.

Several towns in the Tokyo area that were supposed to host the athletes have reportedly dropped out, fearing that the program would spread Covid-19.

In a letter to the government this week, a doctors' group said it was "impossible" to hold the Games due to the pandemic's progress.

None of these are strong calls for the Games to be canceled, but with health experts' concerns and public opinion turning against them in recent weeks, the trickle of doubters has grown into a persistent chorus.

There's more to it than money.

However, the financial burden of canceling the Olympics is not the only issue at hand.

The Winter Games in February 2022, hosted by regional competitor China in Beijing, are the next Games on the global calendar.

As a result, there is little question that Japan is willing to go to great lengths to complete the Tokyo Olympics.

The last time Japan held a Summer Olympics was in 1964, and they were seen as a significant symbol of the country's post-World War II reconstruction and rebuilding phase at the time.

Prof Anderson explained that there is a symbolic meaning for the Tokyo 2020/21 Games.

"Japan has been in economic stagnation for a long time, and there has been the tsunami and the Fukushima nuclear disaster, so the Games will be seen as symbolic of Japan's rebirth," he says. "It has a particular significance in that regard."

Finally, the issue of when the Games should be held is distinct from the question of when they would be held. Just three times in the history of the modern Olympics has the event been canceled: in 1916, 1940, and 1944, all three times due to World Wars I and II.

Despite mounting headwinds, the IOC's reluctance to accept a cancellation has most analysts accepting that the Olympics will take place starting on July 23 - but in what shape or form is still unknown.