(Fighting New Crown Pneumonia) Global War Epidemic: New Crown Epidemic Adds Uncertainty to International Sports
China News Service, Beijing, March 9th (Reporter Diao Haiyang) 2020 was a big year for international sports events, but the continuing spread of the new crown pneumonia epidemic has affected many heavyweight events. A number of events were announced to be cancelled, postponed or held in situ. Serie A, F1 Grand Prix Bahrain and other events were held in open air. The preparations for the Tokyo Olympics and athlete preparations also attracted much attention. With the development of the epidemic, how many more events will be forced to adjust? It is still unknown at present.
Can the Tokyo Olympics be held as scheduled?
IOC President Bach recently called on the Internet to "go all out" to prepare for the Olympic Games. He said that the International Olympic Committee will fully support the opening and successful hosting of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games on July 24.
Bach said that the current epidemic has brought challenges to the selection of Olympic qualifications. He called on athletes, national (regional) Olympic committees and international individual sports federations to show flexibility and actively adapt to adjustments in venues, travel restrictions, training and competition schedules.
Affected by the epidemic, the International Olympic Committee and the World Health Organization, the Tokyo Olympics Organizing Committee, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, and the Japanese Government have recently held several consultations. From the current situation, all parties have agreed to prepare for the Tokyo Olympics as planned, and to evaluate the development of the epidemic at any time.
At present, the torch collection activities of the Tokyo Olympic Games are directly affected by the epidemic. The Greek Olympic Committee announced on the 3rd of this month that in order to reduce risks, the collection of the Tokyo Olympic flame, the transfer within Greece, and handover will be minimized.
On the 6th, the Tokyo Olympic Organizing Committee announced that the Tokyo Olympic Water Sports Center, which hosts the Olympic swimming and diving competitions, has been completed as scheduled, and is scheduled to officially open on the 22nd. The Tokyo Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games stated that with the completion of all new permanent venues, preparations for all venues in the Olympic Games are proceeding according to schedule.
Is the European Cup "empty", postponed or held as usual?
The 2020 European Cup is scheduled to be held from June 12th to July 12th. The competition will be held in 12 cities in 11 European countries. The opening game will begin at the Olympic Stadium in Rome, Italy. As of now, all confirmed cases have occurred in 11 host countries. Many fans are worried about whether the European Cup and the Champions League will be affected.
On the 3rd of this month, the 44th UEFA Congress was held in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. UEFA officials said after the meeting that they are maintaining close communication with all parties and will not make adjustments to the European Cup and the Champions League. However, this statement did not alleviate external concerns, because UEFA does not have the final decision. Whether the game changes depends on the attitude of the host government.
As of now, the sports departments of Italy, France, the United Kingdom and other countries have made adjustments to their national leagues and national teams. According to some opinions, if the European epidemic continues to spread, the European Cup and the Champions League may be held open or postponed.
Of the five major European leagues, Serie A will be held before April 3. The Premier League will suspend the fair play handshake before the start of this weekend. In addition, the Premier League is also considering whether to hold it empty. The Ligue 1 official announced on the 6th that Strasbourg's home game against Paris Saint-Germain would be postponed. At present, La Liga and the Bundesliga have not yet made a decision to adjust their match arrangements.
Want NBA star signatures harder?
As the epidemic in the United States continues to spread, NBA officials recently issued a memorandum to 30 teams to make recommendations on preventing the epidemic. According to media reports, it is recommended that players avoid contacting fans with pens, balls, jerseys and other items when signing for fans, and it is best to use their pens to sign. Some players have stated that they will not sign or high-five to celebrate in the near future, but others have stated that they will not change the tradition of interacting with fans.
In addition, the NBA official also reminded the team to prepare for the empty game, spectators and the media will be restricted from entering the stadium, and the number of team staff must be limited to the necessary range. If players or staff are found to be infected with the new crown virus, they should be quarantined immediately.
For the open game, the Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James has made it clear that he will not play without an audience. He said that the players and fans are the significance of his participation in the game.
At present, the NBA has no official plans to adjust the schedule. According to the schedule, the playoffs will begin in April and the finals will be held in June. There has been a "shrink" in the history of NBA history, but there has never been a precedent for open games. (Finish)