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The Corona virus which has been causing havoc in the Wuhan province of China and which has already been declared a global health emergency by World Health Organisation (WHO) has also made an impact on the sporting world.
The BWF World Tour 2020’s upcoming Lingshui China Masters tournament which was supposed to begin on February 25 has been postponed due to the outbreak of the virus. The decision was taken jointly by BWF and Chinese Badminton Association (CBA). When the event will finally be staged is yet to be decided.
The official BWF website reports that the two organizing organisations are considering the option of staging the event in May this year. The tournament assumes greater importance because it was part of the qualifying tournaments for the Olympics later this year.
Now that it is certain to be delayed till the window of qualification expires, there will be no qualification points for Olympics to be had from this event. The next tournament in the World Tour is the Barcelona Spain Masters Super 300 which will begin on February 18 and conclude on February 23.
But the Lingshui China Masters isn’t the only tournament to be affected by Corona virus’ menace. The 2020 Badminton Asia Championships – to be staged in Wuhan – has also come under serious doubt. The sports’ main governing body in the continent – Badminton Asia – is considering its options.
The Asian Championships are also part of the qualifying events for Tokyo 2020. The CBA and Badminton Asia may be forced to move the event to another venue. One thing is certain, the Corona virus has thrown a spanner in the works as far as a very exciting season of badminton is concerned.
