European Indoor Masters Championships Cancelled due to Coronavirus

The European Masters Athletics Indoor championships which were to be hosted in the Portuguese town of Braga from the 15th March have been cancelled, this was following a series of consultation meetings in light of the recent global epidemic of the Coronavirus, below follows the details as posted by the LOC

Declaration Declaration
EUROPEAN MASTER ATHLETICS CHAMPIONSHIP INDOOR
(Emaci 2020 Braga)

Dear participants in emaci 2020 Braga,

It is common knowledge, regardless of the country or nationality, that we live in our daily life an inequality, with an invisible, dangerous and easy-to –
This danger, under the name of new coronavirus (Covid-19), has drastically affected our daily routines, causing different responses, from country to country, depending on the volume of people infected.
Despite the various interpretations of the dangers of this virus, all government entities are promoting a wide range of measures, restrictions and policies to create measures to contain the spread of the virus.
The General Health Board, the government body responsible for health in Portugal, has defined a series of parameters that allow a risk assessment in the light of existing scientific knowledge.
In carrying out this evaluation, it was concluded that the emaci 2020 Braga is considered a high-Risk Sports event, due to the fact that it is highly held in a closed environment, consisting of a total of more than 3.000 participants, With participants from 51 countries, some with high rates of covid-19.
This analysis also found that any control measures that can be taken to reduce the risk of spread of the disease do not seem, in the sports context in which it is carried out, to reduce the risk of transmission of the
In view of the assumptions of this analysis, the organization of Emaci 2020 Braga decided to present the realization of this event to the municipal Civil Protection Commission, an advisory body that integrates all entities responsible for the safety of the people who are part of the The Municipality, Civil Protection, ministry of health, public health, security forces, among others.
It was unanimously recommended that the emaci 2020 Braga should not be held, not only because the safety of participants, organization, judges and volunteers is not guaranteed, but also because the city itself and the country could suffer consequences with the realization of this sports In this specific period.
In view of this strong recommendation, which is associated with a high risk analysis by the general health department, the organization of the emaci 2020 Braga will not follow the realization of this important sports event, which would certainly mark the sports history of braga and Portugal.
As the body responsible for the safety of all participants and their families, the local organizing committee, despite the extreme work and investment already carried out so far, is absolutely incapable of ensuring this security, something fundamental to the success we all wish with this championship .
We are obviously sensitive to the dissatisfaction that this measure can cause in the more than 3.150 participants who would be with us in braga, from 15 to 21 March, but we would certainly live a period of extreme uncertainty, which could , something we wouldn’t be able to endure in our conscience.
For us, organizing, we understand that life is much more important than the realization of a sports event.
However, considering the responsibility we assume when we became an organizing city of Emaci 2020 Braga and given the importance of this sports event, we present to the European Master Athletics (EMA) our total availability to postpone this championship until January 2021 ( 10 to 17), thus allowing their realization and keeping all athletes already automatically registered for this new period.
We thank everyone for understanding this decision-making, which obviously was not easy to solve, but which, in conscience, we believe is the best option for everyone.
We sincerely hope that you will be with us in January 2021. we count on

Braga, March 04, 2020

Vice President of Braga | President

Sameiro Araújo

This statement has followed the statement placed on the 2nd by the EMA Council and president Kurt Kaschke