The coronavirus outbreak has brought all sports activities to a halt and players are practising social distancing and self-isolation during the pandemic. The World Health Organisation (WHO) and the governments all around are urging people to stay at home.
New Zealand's Olympic and Paralympic Athletes have voiced their support towards postponing the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games due to the rapid spread of the coronavirus across the globe.
Kereyn Smith, Kiwi Olympic Committee CEO, has confirmed that she welcomed the feedback gathered in a New Zealand Athletes' Commission survey.
"Our focus is first and foremost the athletes. We value their resilience and flexibility and we know working through the changes won't be easy," Smith said in an official statement.
The coronavirus outbreak has brought all sports activities to a halt and players are practising social distancing and self-isolation during the pandemic. The World Health Organisation (WHO) and the governments all around are urging people to stay at home.
On March 23, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) member Dick Pound had hinted that the grand event may be postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
"I see no other rational interpretation of the statements made by the IOC yesterday. If there was to be a cancellation, that would have been easy to announce; if carrying on with the original plan, there was no need for communication. That leaves postponement," Pound was quoted as saying by CNN.
The Paralympics New Zealand boss Fiona Allan said, "Paralympians and Para athletes believed a postponement of the Paralympic Games is the preferred option. This would create a fair, safe and level playing field for all nations especially given the severely hampered training environments."
The rapid spread of Coronavirus worldwide has started seeing its serious impacts.
India so far has 492 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, as per the Health Ministry, while 10 people have died due to the highly contagious virus.
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