British Athletics confirms cancellation of Anniversary Games
British Athletics has confirmed the cancellation of the 2020 Müller Anniversary Games, which had been scheduled for July 4-5 at the London Stadium.
The decision to cancel the Wanda Diamond League meeting has been made in light of the ongoing global coronavirus pandemic, "with the safety of all athletes, coaches, volunteers, spectators and members of staff, at home in the UK and abroad, the upmost priority".
The Anniversary Games is the ninth Diamond League meeting to have been postponed or cancelled because of the pandemic, with events in Qatar, China, Sweden, Italy, Morocco, USA, France and Switzerland also affected so far.
The Oslo Diamond League on June 11 is now set to take place as the behind-closed-doors ‘Impossible Games’.
READ MORE: Oslo ‘Impossible Games’ announced for June
It is yet to be confirmed whether the Gateshead Diamond League, set for August 16, will be able to take place as planned, but the cancellation of the London meeting - UK Athletics' flagship event - will have a huge financial impact for the sport in the UK.
UK Athletics CEO Joanna Coates said: "We are hugely disappointed to confirm the cancellation of one of the flagship events of the global athletics calendar, but we must place the safety of the entire athletics family at the forefront of every decision we make during these unprecedented times and ensure we are following Government advice.
"Cancelling the event will have a significant financial impact on UKA and the wider sport. The revenue we generate from events - through ticketing, broadcast and sponsorship - helps administer the sport and provide the essential governance services that we, as an NGB, oversee.
"We’re incredibly thankful to our commercial partners, some of which are continuing to support us during these tough times, but there will be a substantial reduction in income from the cancellation of this event and this will have an impact moving forwards."
In a wide-ranging interview last month, when she was three weeks into her new chief executive role, Coates insisted the governing body would not be at risk of bankruptcy, even if the coronavirus crisis caused the cancellation of the UK’s major meetings.
READ MORE: New UKA CEO seeks ‘ethical success’ and a united sport
Those to have bought Anniversary Games tickets will receive an automatic refund, British Athletics added.
Meanwhile, UK Sport is expected to receive further information soon on how Sunday's update to the UK Government lockdown guidelines impacts elite athlete training, which will be reviewed by UK Athletics.
On Monday England Athletics published a statement from its CEO Chris Jones, which can be found here.
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