South African 400 metres world and Olympic record holder and world and Olympic champion Wayde van Niekerk competes on February 29, 2020, during the Free State Championship in Bloemfontein. (Photo by CHARL DEVENISH / AFP)
World Athletics announced on Tuesday track and field qualification for next year’s Tokyo Olympics has been suspended until December 1 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The Games have already been pushed back from this summer to 2021 due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
“This period gives more certainty for athlete planning and preparation and is the best way to address fairness in what is expected to be the uneven delivery of competition opportunities across the globe for athletes given the challenges of international travel and government border restrictions,” World Athletics president Sebastian Coe said in a statement.
Competitors who have already reached the qualification standards will retain their places for the Games due to take place from July 23 to August 8 next year.
The deadline for the marathon and 50km walk will be May 31 in 2021 with June 29 the date for the remaining events.
World Athletics’ global rankings have also been frozen.
The season is set to begin in June but any results before the restart date will not count.