COVID-19: sport restarts, but more competitions cancelled

As Bow went to press in mid-june, with the world gradually coming out of a lockdown period, the sport remained in turmoil. The vast majority of major outdoor national and international competitions for 2020 have been cancelled.

The World Field Championships, due to take place in Yankton, South Dakota in September, were officially cancelled on 3rd

June and postponed until 2022. The world field was planned to act as the primary qualifier for the upcoming World Games in Birmingham. That event was initially scheduled for 2021 but moved to 2022 following the delay of the Olympics.

Other cancelled events include the European Youth Championships, due to be held at Lilleshall, the European 3D championships and the remainder of the World Cup circuit. The World Cup Final, due to be held in Shanghai at an undetermined date, remains a possibility. Officially, World Archery have promised to give a minimum of two months notice for cancellation and rescheduling.

The postponement of the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics for almost exactly 12 months hence has led to a rescheduling of the qualification events calendar, with most dates and venues as yet unconfirmed, but thought likely to be broadly similar to this year.

Bow discusses more of the issues facing the sport in the news feature on page 8.