Chinese skater Wu Dajing takes a silver medal of the men's 500m at the 2019 world short track speed skating championships in Sofia on March 9, 2019. (Xinhua/AP)
The 2020 short track speed skating world championships have been postponed to no earlier than mid-October because of the coronavirus epidemic.
SEOUL, March 12 (Xinhua) -- The International Skating Union (ISU) has officially delayed the 2020 ISU World Short Track Speed Skating Championships, which was scheduled to be held in the South Korean capital from March 13 to 15.
The decision was made in light of the COVID-19 situation in South Korea, in which the number of infected patients topped 7,800 as of Thursday midnight local time.
Citizens line up to receive tests for the novel coronavirus at Guro-gu district of Seoul, South Korea, March 10, 2020. (Xinhua/Lee Sang-ho)
The Seoul city government closed the Mokdong Ice Rink in Seoul and ordered the cancelation of all planned events.
The ISU said in a statement that it will evaluate in cooperation with all stakeholders whether the 2020 championships could be held later in the year, but no earlier than mid-October. ■
