International sports event given green light
The 2020 Archery World Cup final has become the latest international sports competition Shanghai confirmed to host, while the dates for some signature international sports events are yet to be decided amid the novel coronavirus epidemic, local sports officials told a radio interview on Monday.
According to Xu Bin, director of Shanghai Sports Bureau, the city will host the final of the 2020 Archery World Cup in the middle of November. Previously, Shanghai was scheduled to host one leg of the World Cup series in May, which got affected by the pandemic.
“Considering the important role Shanghai plays in the tournament calendar, as well as the city’s contribution to the promotion of the sport, the World Archery Federation decided to bring the final of the World Cup to Shanghai this year,” said Xu.
Shanghai has been hosting the Archery World Cup series since 2009. This will be the first time the year-end final of the tournament lands in the city.
The 2019 Archery World Cup attracted more than 430 archers, coaches and officials from 40 countries and regions to Shanghai.
With work resuming gradually in all areas, the country’s sports followers are welcoming the restart of the basketball national league on June 20. Xu unveiled that the top-tier national football league – Chinese Super League – is expected to start the 2020 season in the latter part of July.
But it’s more complicated to set or confirm dates for the very popular international sports competitions like the Formula One Chinese Grand Prix, the tennis Rolex Shanghai Masters and the Shanghai International Marathon, though the city’s sports authority and event organizers have been communicating with their international partners and sports organizations frequently.
The F1 race in China was initially scheduled for April 17-19. The Rolex Shanghai Masters has been scheduled to start on October 5, and the Shanghai International Marathon falls on November 29, according to the World Athletics’ event calendar.
“The international sports organizations and associations recognize and support Shanghai’s willingness to host the events. We will continue to follow the development of the virus and decide dates for F1 and tennis Shanghai Masters,” said Xu.
He added, “As for the Shanghai International Marathon, it also depends on the development of the epidemic. Hopefully it will help people find back vitality and confidence toward normal life.”
According to Xu, the Shanghai Citizen Sports Meet, which is held every four years, will start in the second half of the year. Online registration for participation has already started.
Xu said near 100 disciplines have been set in this year’s meet, covering daily exercise items like rope skipping, cycling, plank and chess games.
“Though the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games have been postponed, the citizens can still take part in our own Olympic Games,” said Xu.
