16 March, 2020
The Wanda Diamond League today announces changes to its 2020 season timetable in response to the growing global crisis around the new coronavirus.
Due to the growing number of countries affected by the COVID-19 virus, the first three meetings of the 2020 Wanda Diamond League season, scheduled for 17th April in Qatar, 9th and 16th May 2020 in China, cannot be held as planned. This decision was made in close consultation with organising committees, local authorities and sports governing bodies.
It is forbidden to enter Qatar from a number of countries and the government in Doha has suspended all national and international events for a period of 30 days. While the number of new infections is now decreasing in China, the fact remains that preparations for the meetings have been set back by several weeks and the closed borders, travel restrictions and the need to prioritise athlete safety make it impossible to organise international top level competitions.
The current plan is to stage the Shanghai event on 13th August. New dates for Doha and the second meeting in China remain to be announced. It could be that they will be held after the Wanda Diamond League Final in Zurich from 9th through 11th September, where the Diamond League Champions will be crowned, should the global situation allow.
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