Asian Games postponed till 2023, China's Hangzhou to host event from September 23 next year
In the latest development, the Asian Games organizers have confirmed that China will host the event at Hangzhou in 2023, instead of the scheduled date in 2022, due to Covid-19. The Games will now begin on September 23 next year, and will go until October 8, the Olympic Council of Asia said.
For the last few months, China has been witnessing a surge in Covid-19 cases, which has led to the postponement of the event, which was originally slated to start in September 2022. Hangzhou, the host city, is less than 200 kilometers from Shanghai, China's biggest city, which has endured months of lockdown now.
The OCA went on to say that the new dates were announced to avoid "conflict with other major international sporting events". Apart from the Olympics, Asian Games is the biggest event hosted anywhere in the world, involving close to 10,000 athletes from across the region.
Covid-19 has led to the cancellation of many other sporting events in China, in the last two years, except for the Winter Olympics in Beijing. Apart from the Asian Games, the World University Games, scheduled to begin in June in Chengdu, have been delayed from 2021, and most likely be held in 2023 only, though the dates are not fixed.
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