A view of Rome’s Olympic Stadium, one of the venues planned for the Euro 2020 tournament, which is under growing pressure to be postponed due to coronavirus, in Rome, Italy, March 16, 2020. REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane
March 17, 2020
(Reuters) – Sports events around the world that have not been suspended, postponed or canceled due to the coronavirus outbreak:
OLYMPICS
** The Olympics from July 24-August 9 in Tokyo have not been postponed or suspended. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) will hold talks with heads of international sports organizations on March 17.
** The Tokyo 2020 Olympics torch lighting ceremony in ancient Olympia was held without spectators.
** The Tokyo 2020 Olympics flame handover ceremony in Athens on March 19 will be a scaled-down event with only a few Tokyo Games officials and torch bearers inside the stadium.
SOCCER
** Australia’s top flight A-League soccer competition has banned spectators for the rest of the 2019/20 season and faces a temporary hiatus due to quarantine restrictions that have affected two teams.
Organizers are nonetheless planning to pack the final matches into a condensed schedule before the playoffs.
** The Copa America from June 12-July 12 in Argentina and Colombia is set to go ahead.
** Argentina’s cup competition, the Copa de la Superliga, and the Brazilian state championships are being played without spectators in attendance.
SNOOKER
** The Coral Tour Championship in Llandudno, Wales, from March 17-22 is going ahead as planned.
** The World Championships in Sheffield from April 18-May 4 is going ahead as of now.
BOXING
** The European Olympic boxing qualifying tournament in London will be held without spectators from March 16-24.
RUGBY
** South Africa’s July tests against Scotland and Georgia remain as scheduled but will be reviewed in April.
RUGBY LEAGUE
** Australia’s National Rugby League, the world’s richest competition in the 13-man rugby code and the most popular spectator sport in the country’s eastern states, is continuing for the time being at closed stadiums.
MIXED MARTIAL ARTS
** A UFC mixed martial arts event in Brazil on March 14 went ahead in an empty arena.
** UFC Fight Night 171, which was to be held in London on March 21, will be relocated to a new venue, possibly in the United States.
HORSE RACING
** The British Horseracing Authority confirmed races in England, Scotland and Wales until the end of March will take place without spectators in attendance.
** Australian races are also continuing in key markets but without fans
AUSTRALIAN RULES FOOTBALL
** The top flight Australian Football League is expected to launch its season as scheduled in Melbourne on Thursday but without fans in attendance and after organizers slashed the season to 17 rounds from 22.
(Compiled by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru, editing by Pritha Sarkar/Peter Rutherford)
