The Badminton World Federation (BWF) reported this Saturday that the Lingshui China Masters 2020, which was originally to be played on the Chinese island of Hainan at the end of February, has been postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak that ravages to the Asian giant.
The national sport par excellence of the Chinese joins the list of those affected by this epidemic that has caused 259 deaths and 11,791 infected to date and is causing the paralysis of the Asian giant and the cancellation of numerous sporting events.
“The world governing body for badminton and the Chinese Badminton Association have considered all the necessary risks to health, safety and logistics and both parties believe it is sensible to postpone the tournament at this time,” the BWF said in the statement.
The tournament was to be played from February 25 to March 1, 2020 and exact replacement dates have yet to be established.
However, the rescheduled tournament will no longer be a qualifying event for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, as the date is being shuffled in May and the qualification window will close at the end of April.
The BWF also confirmed that the 2020 Asia Badminton Championships to be held in Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak, in late April, is now under review and that it is “too early” to make decisions about the event.
The 2020 Asia Badminton Championships is within the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games qualification window and is one of the last opportunities for athletes to qualify for the Games.
“BWF will continue to update the entire badminton community on any other announcements related to the coronavirus outbreak,” the statement added.
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