Wimbledon the latest event to be cancelled

WIMBLEDON has become the latest sporting event to be cancelled because of the coronavirus crisis.

The tournament was scheduled to take place at the All England Club from June 29 to July 12.

The All England Club said in a statement: “It is with great regret that the AELTC has decided that The Championships 2020 will be cancelled due to public health concerns linked to the coronavirus epidemic.

“The 134th Championships will instead be staged from 28 June to 11 July 2021.

“Uppermost in our mind has been the health and safety of all of those who come together to make Wimbledon happen – the public in the UK and visitors from around the world, our players, guests, members, staff, volunteers, partners, contractors, and local residents – as well as our broader responsibility to society’s efforts to tackle this global challenge to our way of life.

“Since the emergence of the coronavirus outbreak in January, we have followed guidance from the UK Government and public health authorities in relation to our yearround operations, alongside developing an understanding of the likely trajectory of the outbreak in the UK.

“With the likelihood that the Government’s measures will continue for many months, it is our view that we must act responsibly to protect the large numbers of people required to prepare The Championships from being at risk – from the training of ball boys and girls to thousands of officials, line judges, stewards, players, suppliers, media and contractors who convene on the AELTC Grounds - and equally to consider that the people, supplies and services legally required to stage The Championships would not be available at any point this summer, thus ruling out postponement.”

■ PADRAIG Harrington says it would be better to stage the Ryder Cup on schedule this September with a shortened qualification period than postpone the biennial showpiece.

The coronavirus pandemic has already forced the first two major championships of the year - the Masters and the US PGA - to postpone.

Three-time major winner Harrington will captain Europe at Whistling Straits and would rather the event took place this year even if it means changing the qualification criteria.

“We’re playing on, if at all possible, because the merit of getting out there and showcasing our sport far outweighs a perfect qualifying system,” the Irishman told the Daily Mail.

“It wouldn’t worry me if we were the first tournament back and I had to go with 12 picks with no qualifying.