No GP in China? Government cancels all international sporting events

General

9 July 2020 at 18:48
Last update 9 July 2020 at 18:48
  • GPblog.com

Almost all Grands Prix in Asia will not take place this year or are still uncertain because of the corona pandemic. One of the Grands Prix that seemed to be a bit of a certainty was the Chinese one, but this one is now possibly also in doubt. The Chinese government has cancelled almost all international sporting events.

Winter Olympics

On Thursday, the Chinese government decided that international sporting events scheduled for later this year will all be cancelled. The only thing that will remain on the agenda are the qualifying games for the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing, according to Nu.nl.

That puts some pressure on Formula 1, because although it is not excluded one hundred percent, the number of events will remain very limited. According to the government, there is room for a few events, but which ones have yet to be determined.

It remains to be seen whether Formula 1 will eventually be included. Formula 1 is still in consultation with the circuit and the government to determine a new date, but that can now fall into the water.

The sports events of which it is almost certain that they will fall off are the WTA Finals (tennis), the Tour of Guangxi and Chongming (cycling), two golf tournaments and the world finals of badminton.

What the reason is for the large-scale cancellation of sports events, is not entirely clear. Every now and then there are new outbreaks of the coronavirus, but the Chinese government has it under control pretty quickly every time.