“Let’s reset the dates and build up for the Olympics again when we have the [coronavirus] problem under control. We are reaching the point where the physical and mental health of our athletes may be affected.

“I stress this is my personal view and may not be in line with current IOC thinking but I think they will need to change course in coming weeks. We have put training equipment in every athletes quarantine room and we will keep fighting until a final decision is made. But it’s time to think about new solutions.”

With the Covid-19 pandemic now a global fight, most sports events around the world have been postponed or cancelled, including the major football leagues in England, Italy, Spain, Germany and France. Almost 265,000 people have been infected and more than 11,300 have died because of the Covid-19 disease.

Despite the IOC going full speed ahead – supported by national Olympic bodies – a growing number of organisations and individuals simply want closure by calling for a postponement of the Games.

Less than 50 per cent of athletes have secured their Olympics places while the rest are waiting for word on their qualifying events. Perry said it has caused anxiety among Hong Kong athletes, who are clueless as to whether they should keep training or focus on protecting themselves from the coronavirus.

Ron Lee Chung-man, director of community relations and marketing at the Hong Kong Sports Institute, said the elite centre was aware of the issue and was equipped to serve the athletes. “Yes, we have a team of sports psychologists who are qualified to take care of every aspect of an athlete’s psychological needs, whether it is competition, or anything else. You name it,” Lee said.

For Hong Kong’s rowers, all regional qualifiers worldwide have been cancelled. “So we are in limbo,” Perry said.

US Olympic committee CEO Sarah Hirshland said the organisation “doubled down our mental health resources” for its athletes.

“We’ve expanded the accessibility of those resources to a broader group of athletes, and are really working to communicate with them to ensure that we destigmatise any concerns they have about reaching out for mental health support,” Hirshland said.

The pandemic is also preventing many athletes from continuing their usual training regime as several countries are advising people to practise social isolation in a bid to stem the spread of the virus.

US weightlifter Katherine Nye had already secured her ticket to Tokyo, despite her sport’s qualifying period being cut short by a month, and said she was continuing to train out of her garage.

“Some people still had to compete again to qualify, and they have lost that opportunity entirely,” Nye said. “I’m definitely experiencing a lot of anxiety because of the pandemic, just like lots of people around the world. It’s not easy to ignore all the horrible things going on.”

Olympic organisers are facing increasing pressure to postpone the Games with USA Swimming the latest organisation to call for a delay, citing concern for athletes.

“How on earth are we meant to carry on preparing [as] best we can?” Jess Judd, a British middle-distance runner wrote on Twitter.

“Will someone share with me what races we can do to get times and whether trials will go ahead and when training can return to normal?”

Additional reporting by Reuters