Gunners under quarantine Badminton India Open behind closed doors
London, March 11: Arsenal’s game at Manchester City on Wednesday was postponed after players from the London club were put into quarantine, making it the first Premier League football fixture to be called off because of coronavirus.
Arsenal said players and four staff had been isolated at their homes after coming into contact with the owner of Greek club Olympiakos, Vangelis Marinakis, who has since tested positive for COVID-19.
“We are strictly following the government guidelines which recommend that anyone coming into close contact with someone with the virus should self-isolate at home for 14 days from the last time they had contact,” an Arsenal statement said.
The first postponement in the Premier League, which has a huge worldwide following, follows widespread disruption to sports across the globe.
GERMAN FOOTBALLER POSITIVE FOR CORONA
A second division footballer on Wednesday became the first player to test positive for coronavirus in Germany as RB Leipzig became the last Bundesliga side to announce that they would hold their weekend match behind closed doors. Hanover 96 revealed that defender Timo Huebers had tested positive for COVID-19 and Huebers had avoided contact with his colleagues. Their full squad and training staff were however being tested as a precaution.
NO FANS AT IRELAND’S EURO GAME VS SLOVAKIA
The Euro 2020 play-off match between the Republic of Ireland and Slovakia in Bratislava on March 26 will be played behind closed doors, the Slovak Football Association (SFA) announced on Tuesday. The SFA executive committee made the decision “as all public bodies have been banned from organising any public, sports or cultural events.” Slovakia has seven confirmed cases.
INDIA OPEN TO GO ON WITHOUT SPECTATORS
The India Open Super 500 tournament, a crucial event for the Tokyo Olympic qualification, will be held without any spectators due to the global novel coronavirus outbreak, Badminton Association of India (BAI) said on Wednesday. The $400,000 tournament was under threat in the wake of COVID-19 outbreak.
GOLF EVENT POSTPONED TO A LATER DATE
The Indian Open has been postponed due to the coronavirus threat, the European Tour and Asian Tour announced on Wednesday.
The event had been due to take place on March 1922 at DLF Golf and Country Club in Gurugram, New Delhi. The Organisers said they were looking into the possibility of rescheduling the tournament later in the year.