In this picture taken on Jan 22, 2020, judokas attend the judo Winter Training at the Kodokan in Tokyo. (BEHROUZ MEHRI / AFP)

TOKYO - The Tokyo Metropolitan government said it will cancel or postpone major indoor events planned for the next three weeks as Japan tries to halt the spread of the noval coronavirus.

The measure by Tokyo comes as the city prepares to host the 2020 Olympic Games starting in July.

In the latest in a series of sports events to be curtailed or canceled, a women’s marathon in the central Japanese city of Nagoya set for March 8 will be limited to elite runners only, while the Nagoya City Marathon scheduled for the same day has been canceled, organizers said.

Both the Tokyo Marathon, which will be limited to elite runners, and the Nagoya race are Olympic qualifying events for Japanese marathon runners, deepening concern about whether the Summer Games set to start on July 24 will go on as planned.

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Olympics Minister Seiko Hashimoto said the International Olympic Committee had told the Japanese government there were no problems holding the Games as planned at this stage, according to media reports, while at the same time the minister urged sick people not to show up at Olympic torch relay events starting on March 26.