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Berlin and New York City marathons cancelled due to COVID-19

Organisers of both the New York City and Berlin marathons have decided to cancel this year's even...



Berlin and New York City marat...
Other Sports

Berlin and New York City marathons cancelled due to COVID-19

Organisers of both the New York City and Berlin marathons have decided to cancel this year's events due to COVID-19.

Events in Berlin were due to take place on September 26-27, while in New York runners were due to hit the streets on November 1.

They're just the latest in a string of annual sporting events to be either cancelled or postponed as a result of the pandemic.

This year's New York City Marathon was due to be the 50th running of the race.

Last year, 53,640 finished the race, making it the largest marathon field in the world.

"While the marathon is an iconic and beloved event in our city, I applaud New York Road Runners for putting the health and safety of both spectators and runners first," said New York Mayor Bill de Blasio.

"We look forward to hosting the 50th running of the marathon in November of 2021."

Michael Capiraso - president and CEO of New York Road Runners - added, "Canceling this year’s TCS New York City Marathon is incredibly disappointing for everyone involved, but it was clearly the course we needed to follow from a health and safety perspective.

"Marathon Day and the many related events and activities during race week are part of the heart and soul of New York City and the global running community, and we look forward to coming together next year."

The Berlin cancellation is not much of a surprise.

They'd flagged up in early May that the race would not be able to take placed "as planned".

Their statement read, "Our team has also had to practice patience and constantly checked new possibilities for the BMW Berlin Marathon under the given conditions.

"In addition, there were countless discussions about a self-developed sophisticated hygiene concept.

"These processes have required a lot of time as well as your patience. Thank you for your understanding, no matter if you are a runner, skater, wheelchair or handbike athlete."

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Athletics Berlin Marathon Coronavirus Covid-19 Marathon New York City Marathon