YARDE ISSUES STAY-IN PLEA AS DAD DIES
ANTHONY YARDE urged people to stay at home to fight the coronavirus as he announced his dad has died from the disease.
The Londoner – who fought Sergey Kovalev for the WBO light-heavyweight title last year – revealed the passing of his father on Instagram yesterday.
The 28-year-old said: “I’m still in shock but maybe this can help people stay at home.
“My dad passed away from this virus and he was fit with no health issues.
“The more people go out and mingle, the longer this isolation will last and the more it will spread. I’m not a doctor but I know if you stay home you are less likely to catch it or pass it on. It’s not worth the risk.”
● Dillian Whyte’s heavyweight bout with Russian Alexander Povetkin on May 2 will be postponed today.
Promoter Eddie Hearn has already told fighters on the Manchester Arena card the date has been pushed back.
The Matchroom chief is also expected to postpone Dereck Chisora’s fight with Oleksandr Usyk on May 23. ATHLETICS: Seb Coe believes the decision to shelve the Olympics has spared athletes mental turmoil – and even stopped them breaking the law.
The Tokyo Games have been postponed until next year, a move supported by the World Athletics chief.
Coe, the architect of London 2012, said: “We didn’t want to have the athletes in a position where they were countering government advice, maybe even breaking the law.
“And of course in the back of their minds was always that concern it wasn’t just their own training programme but that they ran the risk of infecting themselves, their families, their kids, grandparents or parents.
“We just wanted to take them out of that mental turmoil as quickly as we possibly could.”
Japan national broadcaster NHK reported the opening and closing ceremony are set to be on July 23 and August 8 2021. DARTS: Aussie ace Kyle Anderson has tested positive for coronavirus and is in isolation at home. The 32-year-old had returned Down Under a week-and-ahalf ago after PDC events were suspended.