Sports events around the world hit by coronavirus pandemic

NEW YORK: Major sports events around the world that have been hit by the coronavirus pandemic:

OLYMPICS

The Tokyo 2020 Olympics torch lighting ceremony in ancient Olympia was held without spectators.

• Tokyo 2020 organisers received the Olympic flame in a scaled-down handover ceremony that was closed to spectators.

• The Hellenic Olympic Committee suspended the remainder of the torch relay through Greece to avoid attracting crowds.

OLYMPIC TRIALS

• US trials for wrestling (April 4-5) were postponed.

• US Rowing postponed its team trials.

• US diving trials (April 3-5) were postponed. All USA Diving events postponed for next 30 days.

COURT OF ARBITRATION FOR SPORT

• The Court of Arbitration for Sport said all cases were being put on hold until May. No in-person hearings will be held before May 1.

NORTH AMERICA

• The NBA suspended its season.

• The NHL suspended its season.

• The MLB further delayed its 2020 season’s opening day of March 26 after CDC calls for gatherings of 50 or more people to be cancelled or postponed for eight weeks.

• Boston Marathon organisers postpone the race from April 20 to Sept. 14.

• The National Hockey League told players, including those from outside North America, that they can return home and should self-quarantine through March 27, lengthening the period the NHL had said it was pausing its season.

SOCCER

• Euro 2020 was postponed. Europe’s flagship tournament will now be staged from June 11 to July 11, 2021.

• This year’s Copa America, originally scheduled for JuneJuly in Colombia and Argentina, was postponed to June 11July 11, 2021.

• FIFA has agreed to delay the first edition of its revamped Club World Cup due to be held in 2021.

• UEFA put all club and national team competitions for men and women on hold until further notice.

• All elite games in England, including the Premier League, Football League and Women’s Super League, were suspended until April 30 but the current season can be extended indefinitely.

• Germany’s Bundesliga and second division will pause at least until April 2.

• UEFA postponed all Champions League and Europa League matches due to take place between March 17-19.

• South America’s two biggest club competitions, the Copa Libertadores and Copa Sudamericana, were suspended until at least May 5.

• The CAF postponed two rounds of the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers (March 25-31).

• CONCACAF suspended all competitions, including the Champions League and men’s Olympic qualifiers.

• The top two tiers of French football — Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 — were suspended.

• All matches in Spain’s top two divisions were postponed for two weeks.

• US Major League Soccer suspended its season.

• All soccer in the Netherlands was suspended until the end of March.

• FIFA and AFC agreed to postpone Asian World Cup qualifying matches in March and June.

• FIFA postponed South American qualifying matches for the 2022 World Cup between March 23-31.

• Spain’s Copa del Rey final between Athletic Bilbao and Real Sociedad (April 18) was postponed.

• New seasons in the Chinese, Japanese and South Korean

leagues were postponed.

• A four-team event in Doha featuring Croatia, Portugal, Belgium and Switzerland (March 26-30) was cancelled.

• Asian Champions League: Matches involving Chinese clubs Guangzhou Evergrande, Shanghai Shenhua and Shanghai SIPG were postponed. The start of the knockout rounds was moved back to September.

• The Asian Football Confederation postponed all AFC Cup 2020 matches scheduled for March and April.

• The Brazilian football Confederation suspended all national competitions until further notice.

• The state championships of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, the two biggest in Brazil, were suspended on March 16, the former for 15 days and the latter until further notice.

• All events organised by the Russian Football Union, including Russian Premier League fixtures, between March 17-April 10 were cancelled.

• The CAF postponed the African Nations Championship, a national team tournament for home-based players only (Cameroon; April 4-25).

• The Turkish Super Lig, among the last to continue playing matches, was suspended after players complained. Basketball and volleyball leagues in the country were also suspended. OTHER SPORTS ATHLETICS

• The Diamond League postponed its first three meetings of the 2020 season due to be held in April and May in Qatar and China.

• The World Athletics Indoor Championships (Nanjing, March 13-15) were postponed. They will be held in the same city from March 19-21, 2021.

• The Paris and Barcelona marathons were postponed.

• The London marathon (April 26), was postponed to Oct. 4.

• The Penn Relays (April 23-25), were cancelled for the first time in the event’s 125-year history. The Mt. SAC Relays and Florida Relays, also scheduled for April, and the March Texas Relays, were all cancelled.

• Kenya’s athletics authority ordered the closure of training camps and clubs, hampering athletes’ preparations for the Olympics.

AUSTRALIAN RULES

• The Australian Football League’s attempt to forge on with the season despite the virus outbreak lasted one round before it was shut down on March 22 in the wake of a government crackdown on non-essential travel.

BADMINTON

• The Badminton World Federation cancelled the last five tournaments in the qualification period for the Olympics, making the All England Open played from March 11-15 the final event to count towards qualification.

BASEBALL

• The final qualification tournament in Taiwan for the Olympics was put back from April to June 17-21, while the March 22-26 qualification event in Arizona was postponed.

• Japan’s professional league postponed the start of the season.

BASKETBALL

• Euroleague Basketball suspended all 2019-20 EuroLeague, EuroCup and Euroleague Next Generation Tournament games.

BOXING

• The European, American and final world qualifying boxing tournaments for the Tokyo Olympics were suspended on March 16. The European qualifier in London that was underway and due to run to March 24, ended after the evening session on March 17.

• Anthony Joshua’s world heavyweight title defence against Bulgarian Kubrat Pulev at Tottenham Hotspur’s stadium on June 20 could be postponed if Spurs need the stadium to complete this season’s Premier League fixtures.

CRICKET

• The last two games of Australia’s three-match oneday international series against New Zealand in Sydney and Hobart were cancelled.

• Australia and New Zealand’s limited-overs tours were postponed.

• The start of the Indian Premier League T20 tournament (March 29) was postponed until April 15. —Reuters