AFI Cancels National Championships This Year In View Of COVID-19 Pandemic | Athletics News

The Athletics Federation of India (AFI) on Wednesday cancelled this yr’s nationwide championships in view of the COVID-19 pandemic, nearly bringing the season to an finish with none festival. The transfer was once on anticipated strains after the AFI on August 28 made up our minds to defer the season, previous scheduled to start out on September 12 in view of the worldwide well being disaster. There has no longer been any athletics festival up to now this season. A countrywide throws open championships will likely be held in Patiala on October 26 and 27 and that would be the most effective profitable match on the senior degree this yr. A couple of zonal occasions in November and the nationwide adolescence championships in Vijaywada in December are the opposite competitions to be held this yr.

The AFI appeared to be hoping that the following season, which will likely be a very powerful for Olympics qualification for quite a few athletes, will likely be a standard one with the primary Indian Grand Prix in Thiruvananthapuram kick-starting the competitions for 2021 on February 12.

This will likely be adopted by means of the second one and 3rd Grand Prix occasions on February 19 and 27 in Thiruvananthapuram and Patiala respectively. The 2021 Federation Cup Senior Nationwide Championships will likely be held in Patiala from March 10-14, in step with the calendar issued by means of AFI.

The Nationwide Inter-State Senior Athletics Championships will likely be held in Bengaluru from June 25-29. The calendar additionally pencilled within the first Nationwide Below-23 Championships in New Delhi from August 24-26.

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All of the Indian Grand Prix occasions, the Federation Cup and the Nationwide Inter-State are Olympic qualifying occasions.

“The contest calendar was once re-drawn holding in thoughts the upward thrust within the COVID-19 circumstances around the nation…AFI is duty-bound to supply competitions to our athletes however because of the existing cases we need to care for the security of our athletes,” AFI President Adille Sumariwalla stated in a free up.