Olympic boxing qualifier in Wuhan scrapped over virus

FILE – Philippines’ Eumir Felix Marcial fights during the 30th Southeast Asian Games 2019. He is one of the boxers expected to compete in the Asia/Oceania qualifiers for the Tokyo Olympics. INQUIRER PHOTO/ Sherwin Vardeleon

A boxing qualifier for the Tokyo Olympics scheduled for next month in China’s Wuhan will be canceled over the outbreak of a new virus, Japan’s Kyodo news agency said Wednesday.

Citing organizers, Kyodo said the qualifiers would be rescheduled and moved from Wuhan, where the outbreak of the new strain of coronavirus is believed to have begun.

There was no independent confirmation from the organizers, and Japan’s boxing federation said it was waiting to hear from the International Olympic Committee on the reported cancellation.

Kyodo said the IOC was expected to announce a new host and schedule for the qualifiers.

Eight Filipino boxers are lined up to compete in the  Asia-Oceania qualifiers, which dangle slots to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

The reported cancelation comes as China said the new strain of coronavirus has killed nine people and infected at least 440 others in the country.

Cases have also been reported outside China, in countries including the United States, South Korea, Japan and Thailand.

The coronavirus has caused alarm for its similarity to SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome), which killed nearly 650 people across mainland China and Hong Kong in 2002-2003.

Several countries have already stepped up monitoring measures for visitors coming from China, and the World Health Organisation will hold an emergency meeting Wednesday on whether to declare a rare global public health emergency over the virus.