by Alfonz Juck
Testing kit for the coronavirus, photo by Journalists Resource
VIRUS IMPACT
MONACO (MON): Diamond League meetings in Stockholm (24 May), Naples/Rome (28 May) and Rabat (31st May) have all been postponed due to the coronavirus. Meeting organisers, the Wanda Diamond League and World Athletics remain committed to delivering a structured extensive season in 2020 and an alternative calendar for the 2020 season is to be announced in due course.
MONACO (MON): The meets of inaugural World Athletics Continental Tour Gold planned for early part of the season were also postponed. The Calendar on World Athletics website confirms that Nairobi (May 2), Tokyo (May 10), Nanjing (May 13), Ostrava (May 22) and Turku (June 9) were all postponed for later in the season. Already earlier was announced that Hengelo meet (planned for June 1) will be held next time in 2021.
MONTREAL (CAN): World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) President Witold Banka has warned athletes against using the coronavirus pandemic to cheat the system, informs insidethegames.biz. “Anti-doping never sleeps, that is my message to the athletes. We have the Athlete Biological Passport, long-term analysis, intelligence and investigations and others, which will be key tools in the coming weeks and months. This is not space for cheats and I can say to the athletes that we will do everything we can to protect clean athletes during this time,” he said.
TOKY0 (JPN): Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike has called for the Olympic marathons to be moved back from Sapporo to Tokyo in 2021, informs Japan Times. “Tokyo citizens want” the marathon and race walk to take place in Tokyo, she told reporters.
BRAUNSCHWEIG (GER): The German Championships which were due to take place on 6-7 June will be rescheduled due to the coronavirus pandemic, informs Leichtathletik.de. “We are currently looking for an alternative in the second half of 2020. As soon as we have found a new date, we will inform you immediately,” said DLV President Jürgen Kessing.
WARSZAWA (POL): Polish Federation postponed the 10 000 m national championships planned for April 24. Karpacz will remain the organiser in the new date.
