Badminton World Federation cancels Hong Kong, Macau Open due to spike in Covid-19 cases

Kuala Lumpur: The Badminton World Federation (BWF) has announced the cancellation of two world-tour badminton events—Hong Kong Open Super 500 and Macau Open Super 300—due to the COVID-19 restrictions in the two countries. The events were scheduled to take place in November. 

The BWF said that the step was taken as the governing bodies of the two countries had informed them that hosting an event would not be viable under the current situation. 

The Hong Kong Badminton Association (HKBA) has been working closely with government authorities to seek special approval. The HKBA said, "In light of the ongoing COVID-19 situation and the complexities of quarantine measures in Hong Kong, the HKBA has been working closely with government authorities to seek special approval to ease some restrictions for event participants. However, with quarantine restrictions still required for all overseas visitors, However, there was no other viable option than to cancel the tournament." 

Similarly, the Badminton Federation of Macau has also informed BWF there was no possibility to conduct their tournament this year after considering all travel and entry restrictions into Macau and the ongoing health prevention measures in place. 

After the ongoing Japan Open this week, the world tour is all set to move to Europe in October for tournaments in Denmark, France, and Germany. While the Macau Open was slated from November 1 to 6, the Hong Kong Open was to be held in Kowloon from November 8 to 13.

Published on: Thursday, September 01, 2022, 04:17 PM IST