Abstract
The world is currently struggling with the global health emergency of COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019). The COVID-19 pandemic has put a halt to numerous high-performance sport activities; in particular, the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games have been postponed until 2021. As the United Nations has pointed out, the actions that countries take now in response to the spread and impact of COVID-19 will be fundamental to a fair and sustainable transition to a new social contract in the years ahead. Thus, it is time to transform the “Old Normal” into the “New Normal” in a variety of fields, and high-performance sports is no exception. We aim to summarize what is important when seeking to determine how COVID-19 will impact high-performance sports and to discuss the challenges of high-performance sports in the “New Normal.” There is concern about the impact of COVID-19 on the mental health of elite athletes and the loss of opportunities for competition in the pathways of athlete development. In conclusion, athletes, coaches, and stakeholders in high-performance sports will compete to quickly adapt to the “New Normal” when high-performance sports activities restart. As COVID-19 could fundamentally change our approach to high-performance sports in the future, this issue requires further analysis.
