O'Sullivan was silver medallist at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney - five years after winning 5,000m World Championship gold
Ireland's Sonia O'Sullivan believes postponing the Olympics until next year could be the "fairest" response to the coronavirus outbreak.
The former 5,000m Olympic silver medallist said it would be a viable option given the uncertainty over the duration of the current health crisis.
"The fairest way might be to have the Olympics in 2021," O'Sullivan said on RTE Radio's Morning Ireland programme.
"Nobody wins if everything is called off, but already everybody is losing."
Japan's Olympic minister Seiko Hashimoto this week said the country planned to host the games despite coronavirus.
Japan has more than 1,400 confirmed cases and 28 deaths resulting from Covid-19.
"Anyone who has booked tickets in recent times, even if you can change your flight, when do you change it to?" added O'Sullivan.
"You don't know when everything will be back to normal again.
"Athletes and teams, it's a logistical nightmare for everyone. There is time. It is possible it goes on, but it depends how controlled this pandemic can be.
"I think I would be in favour of the Olympics being postponed until next year, as much as I would love for it to be on this summer."
