Lighting Ceremonies in Olympia Curtailed

(ATR) The Lighting and Handover ceremonies for the Olympic Flame in ancient Olympia later this month will go ahead despite the coronavirus outbreak.

But the Hellenic Olympic Committee on Tuesday said "with a sense of responsibility for the protection of public health" the plans surrounding the events would be curtailed.

The Lighting ceremony is scheduled for March 12 and the Handover to Tokyo 2020 for March 19.

After meeting with several Greek government agencies, the HOC decided to implement the following changes: To cancel lunches, dinners and receptions scheduled by the HOC in ancient Olympia during the Lighting ceremony; to reduce significantly the number of accreditations issued; to hold the dress rehearsal of the Lighting ceremony on March 11 without spectators; and to recommend to the Municipality and local authorities of ancient Olympia that they reduce the number of public events already scheduled.

The HOC also decided that, starting on Thursday, it would meet every two days to study the latest analysis and data and make any additional changes as needed with regards to the Olympic Flame ceremonies.

Rabat Grand Slam Judo Event Cancelled

The International Judo Federation announced on Tuesday that the Rabat Grand Prix scheduled for March 6-8 has been cancelled due to the coronavirus.

The IJF says increased precautionary measures as of Tuesday by the Moroccan government means all international sports competitions, exhibitions and public gatherings have been cancelled or postponed in the country.

"We apologize for the unexpected occurrence of the event and we do understand the inconvenience for all stakeholders, especially for our athletes and delegations,"the IJF said in a statement.

The IJF added that it is "searching for the appropriate solutions for this unexpected situation and all its consequences across all levels".

As a first emergency measure, the IJF has reopened the registration for the Ekaterinburg Grand Slam scheduled for March 13-15 until noon on March 12.

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Written by Gerard Farek

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