AGL 40.00 Decreased By ▼ -0.16 (-0.4%)
AIRLINK 129.53 Decreased By ▼ -2.20 (-1.67%)
BOP 6.68 Decreased By ▼ -0.01 (-0.15%)
CNERGY 4.63 Increased By ▲ 0.16 (3.58%)
DCL 8.94 Increased By ▲ 0.12 (1.36%)
DFML 41.69 Increased By ▲ 1.08 (2.66%)
DGKC 83.77 Decreased By ▼ -0.31 (-0.37%)
FCCL 32.77 Increased By ▲ 0.43 (1.33%)
FFBL 75.47 Increased By ▲ 6.86 (10%)
FFL 11.47 Increased By ▲ 0.12 (1.06%)
HUBC 110.55 Decreased By ▼ -1.21 (-1.08%)
HUMNL 14.56 Increased By ▲ 0.25 (1.75%)
KEL 5.39 Increased By ▲ 0.17 (3.26%)
KOSM 8.40 Decreased By ▼ -0.58 (-6.46%)
MLCF 39.79 Increased By ▲ 0.36 (0.91%)
NBP 60.29 No Change ▼ 0.00 (0%)
OGDC 199.66 Increased By ▲ 4.72 (2.42%)
PAEL 26.65 Decreased By ▼ -0.04 (-0.15%)
PIBTL 7.66 Increased By ▲ 0.18 (2.41%)
PPL 157.92 Increased By ▲ 2.15 (1.38%)
PRL 26.73 Increased By ▲ 0.05 (0.19%)
PTC 18.46 Increased By ▲ 0.16 (0.87%)
SEARL 82.44 Decreased By ▼ -0.58 (-0.7%)
TELE 8.31 Increased By ▲ 0.08 (0.97%)
TOMCL 34.51 Decreased By ▼ -0.04 (-0.12%)
TPLP 9.06 Increased By ▲ 0.25 (2.84%)
TREET 17.47 Increased By ▲ 0.77 (4.61%)
TRG 61.32 Decreased By ▼ -1.13 (-1.81%)
UNITY 27.43 Decreased By ▼ -0.01 (-0.04%)
WTL 1.38 Increased By ▲ 0.10 (7.81%)
BR100 10,407 Increased By 220 (2.16%)
BR30 31,713 Increased By 377.1 (1.2%)
KSE100 97,328 Increased By 1781.9 (1.86%)
KSE30 30,192 Increased By 614.4 (2.08%)
Sports Print 2020-03-23

French athletics chief joins calls for Olympic postponement

The president of the French Athletics Federation on Sunday said he did not understand why the International Olympic Committee (IOC) was refusing to postpone the Tokyo Olympics in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.
Published 23 Mar, 2020 12:00am

The president of the French Athletics Federation on Sunday said he did not understand why the International Olympic Committee (IOC) was refusing to postpone the Tokyo Olympics in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.
Andre Giraud joined a swelling chorus of objections when he told AFP that the French National Olympic Committee (CNOSF) must "take a stand". He said that the IOC should already be thinking of what he called "Plan C", a postponement to 2021.
"It cannot be accepted that the IOC is not listening to the number one Olympic sport," Giraud said. "Everyone agrees that the Games cannot be held on the dates planned."
"If the crisis is contained by the end of May, we can envisage a postponement of the Games to the autumn. But Plan C would be a six-month or one-year postponement.
"How can we bring together 11,000 athletes in less than four months in the Olympic village? The athletes are in a stressful situation and we need to reassure them. We can't wait any longer.
Giraud also called CNOSF President Denis Masseglie to act.
"I appeal to the CNOSF to take action with the IOC. We need a national position of solidarity," he said.
"At the Games, the French team is under the CNOSF banner. The responsibility at national level therefore lies with the CNOSF President to listen to his federations and take a stand."
IOC president Thomas Bach has signalled his determination to press ahead with the Games in Tokyo from July 29 to August 9, telling the New York Times that postponement "would not be responsible now" as "we are four-and-a-half months away from the Games".
On Friday USA Swimming said they wanted the Games postponed. They were soon joined by France's swimming federation and the Norwegian Olympic Committee as well as likely competitors.
The US and Spanish athletics federations have also asked for a postponement.
Sebastian Coe, the head of World Track and Field, hinted that he was leaning that way.
"I don't think we should have the Olympic Games at all costs," said Coe, who ran the 2012 London Games. "A decision on the Olympic Games may become very obvious very quickly."

Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2020

Comments

Comments are closed.