UK Sport has reportedly asked the government for "exceptional funding" worth £53. 4 million as a means of helping the nation prepare for the postponed Tokyo 2020 Olympics and Paralympics.

The funding agency has asked for monetary support starting from April 2021 as a means of assurance that funding would be available up to the rescheduled games.

The current funding cycle would run until March 2021. This leaves a gap of several months, which is expected to pose a risk for the sports' governing bodies and the athletes ahead of the most coveted sporting event due to take place in Japan.

On Tuesday, UK Sport chair Katherine Grainger spoke with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport committee, where she addressed the coronavirus pandemic's impact on the UK's sporting structure.

While doing so, Grainger said, "Unless we know that will be filled, the risks increase for everyone. Every athlete that would have right now been three months away from the biggest event of their lives is isolated individually at home. The sports that support them we already know are at some financial risk. The longer the situation goes on, they will be at greater risk going forward, and it means that the risks going to the Games next year is increasing."

The Tokyo Olympics are now scheduled to run between July 23 and August 8, 2021. On the other hand, the Paralympics would take place between August 24 and September 5 next year.

Grainger, while speaking to the MPs, also said that UK Sports need confirmation about the funding within the next few weeks. She proposed to receive a one-year rollover until March 2022. According to her, if this happens, the organisation could assure all the sports that their funding would continue, no matter what the situation is.

Grainger claimed that the funding assurance would also help the sports to have some consistency going forward through to the next summer's Olympic Games.

Tokyo Olympics
The National Stadium will be the main venue for the Tokyo Olympic Games Photo: AFP / Behrouz MEHRI

According to the BBC, the initial amount that has been requested was calculated based on a detailed review of the impact caused because of the postponement of the games and the COVID-19 pandemic. The governing bodies of each sport were asked to provide such a detailed estimate.

It has been understood that UK Sport has internal savings worth £1.6 million as a means of supporting the system in the short term.

Back in 2016, the agency had announced that it had secured an investment of worth £345 million, in the form of government and National Lottery funds.

Rio 2016 Olympics FIFA England