The coronavirus is having Olympic consequences

World Athletics announced Wednesday its World Indoor Championships for track and field wouldn't be relocated from Nanjing, China, over coronavirus fears. The championships would instead be rescheduled for a whole year from now, erasing an event that, for some athletes, could be a precursor to or even qualifier for the Olympic games in Tokyo this summer.

World Athletics had spent the past few days debating whether it would cancel the championships given that cases of a coronavirus-induced pneumonia were spreading throughout China. Because the spread of the virus was "still at a concerning level," the group eventually decided to put off the event, which was scheduled for March 13–15 of this year. World Athletics said it did consider relocating the event, but "given that concerns still exist regarding the spread of the virus outside China," opted for a total postponement.

The cancellation marks the biggest athletic event to be uprooted as the coronavirus leads to travel cancellations in and out of mainland China. The Olympic women's soccer regional qualifying tournament that was supposed to be held in Wuhan was first relocated to Nanjing, and then to Australia. Yet with China's team quarantined after their hotel after passing through Wuhan recently, the tournament will likely be delayed. An Olympic woman's basketball qualifier scheduled in China was similarly relocated to Serbia.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up