MUNICH – The coronavirus has caused the cancellation and postponement of many sporting events across all sports this year. While many sports want to get back to normal, World Rugby has announced that it has canceled two World Seven Series tournaments.
Tournaments in Hamilton (New Zealand) and Sydney (Australia), which should actually take place at the end of January 2021, are affected. The decision was made in coordination with the countries concerned and international health organizations.
Olympic qualification date still unclear
This means that the tournaments in Hong Kong and Singapore in April 2021 are the next events of the World Seven Series. World Rugby is hopeful that the tournament can take place, but would like to wait for the coronavirus to develop before finally confirming the dates.
The World Rugby Federation, on the other hand, left open the date of the final qualifying tournament for the Olympic Games in its press release. There is still one vacant place for men and two for women.
Support for Olympic Qualifiers
Like the other 21 national teams, all three teams can benefit from the World Association’s assistance program. According to its own statement, World Rugby is providing $2.5 million for Olympic participants. This money should then flow to training camps or other important measures.
The world federation did not comment on more precise details, such as the amount of maximum support per country. Still, it would help rugby federations while ignoring nations that did not qualify for the Olympics.
Do you want the most important Rugby news, videos and data right on your smartphone? Then get the new Run app with push notifications for the most important news about your favorite sport. Available in App Store for Apple and Android.
Total coffee specialist. Hardcore reader. Incurable music scholar. Web guru. Freelance troublemaker. Problem solver. Travel trailblazer.
