Next month’s British Athletics Indoor Championships have been cancelled for the first time in 60 years because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The event had been scheduled to take place at Glasgow’s Emirates Arena from February 20-21, but on Friday British Athletics said the event had been scrapped from the calendar.
The organisation said they would still aim to provide smaller events to allow athletes to qualify for the European Indoor Championships, which are currently scheduled to go ahead in Torun, Poland, from March 5-7.
In a statement, British Athletics said: “The decision was taken in light of the ongoing pandemic to ensure the safety of all those due to participate: athletes, coaches, technical officials, volunteers, event and venue staff as well as protecting the Glasgow community.
“At the present time, the process of testing those attending the championships from across the UK - seen as an essential measure – would not sufficiently mitigate the risks.
“British Athletics recognises our wider social responsibility to reduce Covid-19 transmission and to not overburden the NHS.
“While elite sport has been granted the privilege of an exemption to enable training and competition to continue, the logistics of safely staging a national championships comprising approximately 500+ attendees based across the UK and overseas need to be balanced with the risks to those involved, the local community, and the current medical climate.”
