MANILA, Philippines—The Asian Elite Men and Women Boxing Championships was moved to Dubai, United Arab Emirates from its original host city of New Delhi after a massive spike in COVID-19 cases in India.
The competition’s starting date remains May 21 but the end will be on June 1 instead of the original schedule of May 31.
This change of venues prompted the Association of Boxing Alliances in the Philippines to reconsider its course of action.
“We will make that determination in a few days,” said secretary-general Ed Picson.
The Philippines won three medals in the 2019 edition of the event with Josie Gabuco taking gold in women’s light flyweight, John Marvin settling for the silver in light heavyweight, and Ian Clark Bautista winning bronze in men’s bantamweight.
Most members of the Philippine national boxing team are in Thailand with the host country’s national boxers to prepare for future competitions including the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
The past weeks saw India’s COVID-19 cases spike to hundreds of thousands with Sunday (April 25) registering a staggering 352,991 infections.