British Olympic Association chiefs insist they will not "endanger the health" of athletes by encouraging them to prepare for Tokyo 2020 if the coronavirus makes it unsafe.
The International Olympic Committee remains committed to the Olympics going ahead in Japan on schedule on July 24.
But many athletes have raised concerns that current social distancing restrictions imposed due to the pandemic are making it impossible to prepare properly.
Guy Learmonth, hoping to be picked in the 800m, this week became the first British athlete to warn that the risks of going to Tokyo are too high in the circumstances.
Athletes' frustration was not reserved for the British, with Olympic pole vault champion Katerina Stefanidi also blasting the IOC.
With Euro 2020 and the Copa America postponed because of the virus, there have been calls to cancel the Olympics or push it back, given the widespread chaos in the global sporting schedule at present.
The BOA support the IOC's decision-making process but ...

British Olympic chiefs issue virus vow over Tokyo Games

PTI Automatic

Italy has surpassed China as the country with the most deaths from coronavirus as California, home to more than 39 million people, was placed under lockdown in the most drastic containment measure yet by a US state.
President Donald Trump said meanwhile that the United States is fast-tracking antimalarial drugs for use as a treatment and lashed out at China for not informing the world earlier about the original outbreak.
China for its part reported on Friday a second day with no new domestic cases since the virus appeared in the central city of Wuhan in December, before spreading worldwide.
While there was a glimmer of hope in China, several nations tightened their borders and imposed lockdowns, trapping tens of millions of people in their homes.
And the UN chief warned "millions" could die if the virus spreads unchecked around the globe.
World leaders also unleashed nearly a trillion dollars to prop up the teetering global economy, only to see the once-in-a-century pandemic seemingly 

Italy overtakes China with most virus deaths, California goes on lockdown

Real Madrid striker Luka Jovic apologised on Thursday after travelling to Serbia and breaking self-isolation rules put in place to limit the spread of coronavirus.
Jovic claims he was given permission to fly to his home country of Serbia by Real Madrid, who went into quarantine last week after one of the club's basketball players tested positive for the virus.
But after arriving in Belgrade, according to Spanish newspaper AS, the 22-year-old was "seen on the streets of the capital, celebrating the birthday of his girlfriend".
The local press in Belgrade have reported that Jovic was visited by police, although it is not clear whether charges will be brought against him.
"First of all, I am very sorry that I am the main topic (of debate) these days, and I am sorry that people are constantly writing about me and not about the main protagonists in the fight against this crisis, who are the doctors and all those who work in healthcare," Jovic wrote on social media.
"In Madrid, my Covid-19 .

Jovic apologises for breaking self-isolation rules in Serbia

The "nut rage" heiress who forced a plane to turn back over her macadamias is fighting a bitter battle -- with activist shareholder support -- against her brother for control of the family airline, highlighting resistance to reform in South Korea's chaebols.
Cho Hyun-ah, 45, whose family control the Hanjin group that includes flag-carrier Korean Air, made headlines worldwide with her furious reaction when she was served nuts in a bag instead of a plate in first class.
A series of scandals centring on abuse of subordinates rapidly made the Chos the South's most vilified billionaires.
But now her struggle against brother Cho Won-tae could mark a watershed moment for the family-controlled conglomerates known as chaebols that dominate business in the world's 12th-largest economy.
She has joined forces with an activist investment fund, Korea Corporate Governance Improvement (KCGI), which says better chaebol management will improve efficiency, employee engagement, and shareholder ...

'Nut rage' heiress takes on brother in S Korea succession feud

Two members of the Los Angeles Lakers have tested positive for the new coronavirus on Thursday as the Philadelphia 76ers also confirmed that three of their players had contracted the disease.
The Lakers said they tested their players because on March 10 they played the Brooklyn Nets, who had four players previously test positive for the virus. The Lakers said team doctors are closely monitoring the two players.
"We learned today that two Lakers players have tested positive," said Lakers spokesperson Alison Bogli in a news release.
"Both players are currently asymptomatic, in quarantine and under the care of the team's physician.
"All players and members of the Lakers staff are being asked to continue to observe self-quarantine and shelter at home guidelines, closely monitor their health, consult with their personal physicians and maintain constant communication with the team."
The Sixers said the positive cases were uncovered after health authorities warned that certain players, ...

'Super Spreader' NBA players test positive for coronavirus

It was supposed to be a record 22-race world championship but with seven Grands Prix already either postponed or cancelled, Formula One in 2020 has become a shorter, tightly-packed and economically challenging sprint for the title.
The season-opener in Australia and F1's iconic Riviera showpiece in Monaco have been axed.
Races in Bahrain, Vietnam, China, Netherlands and Spain have also been shelved but with organisers still hoping to shoehorn them into a breathless finale once the threat of the coronavirus had subsided.
A season which should have started in Melbourne on March 14 will now not start until Azerbaijan on June 7 -- at the earliest.
"It's super complicated to redo a calendar because you don't know when everything will be operational," Frederic Vasseur, the team principal of the Alfa Romeo F1 team, told AFP.
"You need to have a global vision. England is not too affected at the moment but it could be when Italy is less affected," he added in reference to the two countries ...

For Formula One, coronavirus means less is more in 2020

Two members of the Los Angeles Lakers have tested positive for the new coronavirus as the Philadelphia 76ers also confirmed that three of their players had contracted the disease.
The Lakers said they tested their players because on March 10 they played the Brooklyn Nets, who had four players previously test positive for the virus. The Lakers said team doctors are closely monitoring the two players.
"We learned today that two Lakers players have tested positive," said Lakers spokesperson Alison Bogli in a news release. "Both players are currently asymptomatic, in quarantine and under the care of the team's physician.
"All players and members of the Lakers staff are being asked to continue to observe self-quarantine and shelter at home guidelines, closely monitor their health, consult with their personal physicians and maintain constant communication with the team."
The Sixers said the positive cases were uncovered after health authorities warned that certain players, coaches and ...

Lakers and Sixers announce coronavirus positives

The Olympic flame arrived in Japan Friday to a muted reception, what should have been a joyous celebration dramatically scaled down due to the coronavirus pandemic that has cast doubt over whether the Tokyo Games can even go ahead.
The flame landed on a special charter flight into Matsushima Air Base in Miyagi province, chosen as part of the "Recovery Olympics" to showcase the region's revival after the 2011 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdown.
Former Japanese Olympians Saori Yoshida and Tadahiro Nomura collected the flame from the aircraft and took it to a cauldron in the shape of a cherry blossom on a stage in front of selected guests.
But some 200 local children that were due to welcome the flame were kept away as part of what organisers called the "heartbreaking" decision to pare back events as the world battles the virus that has killed nearly 10,000 people.
After a speech by chief organiser Yoshiro Mori, the former Olympians lit the cauldron with the torch, also designed to 

Japan welcomes Olympic flame as doubts swirl over Games

President Jovenel Moise has announced Haiti's first two cases of novel coronavirus as his government adopted extraordinary measures to contain its spread.
"We have found the two first cases of coronavirus in our national territory," Moise said during an address televised on state media on Thursday.
Haiti is the Caribbean's poorest and most densely populated country and the virus' arrival spurred the government to implement a series of restrictive measures, including an 8:00 pm to 5:00 am curfew and ban on gatherings of more than 10 people.
Schools, universities and vocational schools are set to close Friday until further notice and Moise ordered factories to suspend work.
He additionally ordered borders closed, with the suspension of all commercial flights from Friday, along with closing all passenger points of entry.
Moise also warned against selling "medicines and hygiene and health products" on the black market.
The president called for calm, saying his government has "always ...

Haiti reports first two coronavirus cases

"Around 30" Malian soldiers were killed and five more injured in a suspected jihadist attack Thursday in the north of the country, the army said.
The attack took place early Thursday at a military camp in Tarkint, north of Gao, an army official told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity.
"The toll in the attack of #Tarkint (#Gao) has risen to around 30 deaths and five  wounded," Mali's armed forces wrote on Twitter.
Earlier, the army had said that its camp in Tarkint was the target of a "terrorist attack", putting the initial toll at two dead and 10 injured.
It is the deadliest attack on the Malian amry in four months.

Around 30 Mali soldiers killed in jihadist attack: Army

China is prepared to "work with all other countries" to intensify the global fight against the deadly coronavirus pandemic, state media on Friday quoted President Xi Jinping as saying.
Xi made the comments in a late-night telephone call with Russia's Vladimir Putin, Xinhua news agency reported.
The Chinese leader said Beijing was "willing to make concerted efforts with Russia and all other countries to... safeguard global public health security," the report added.
"China has the confidence, capacity and certainty to achieve the ultimate victory over the epidemic," Xinhua quoted Xi as telling Putin.
The disease, which has now claimed more than 9,800 lives worldwide, first emerged in the central Chinese city of Wuhan late last year.
It has since spread to 158 countries and territories, according to an AFP tally.
China has faced criticism for not acting quickly enough -- and not disclosing enough information -- as the outbreak erupted.
"Certainly the world is paying a big price for what .

China ready to step up virus cooperation, Xi tells Putin

The United States on Thursday warned against any international travel due to the coronavirus pandemic and advised citizens to come home if possible.
"In countries where commercial departure options remain available, US citizens who live in the United States should arrange for immediate return to the United States, unless they are prepared to remain abroad for an indefinite period," the State Department said as it upgraded its travel advisory to the highest level.
"US citizens who live abroad should avoid all international travel," it said.
The State Department said the growing number of temporary entry restrictions by governments as well as airline cancellations made smooth travel impossible.
It also said that some US embassies had lower capacity to assist citizens due to departures of personnel over COVID-19.

US urges citizens to avoid all international travel, return home

The Cannes film festival will not take place as planned in May because of the coronavirus, its board said Thursday, with its directors looking at postponing it until late June.
The world's biggest film festival was due to take place between May 12 and 23.  But its board said in light of the pandemic they were now looking at rescheduling it to "the end of June-beginning of July".
Several other film festivals, including Tribeca, SXSW and Edinburgh have already been cancelled or put back.

Cannes film festival falls victim to coronavirus

The coronavirus epidemic has killed 108 more people in France over the last 24 hours, bringing the total death toll from the outbreak in the country to 372, the top French health official said Thursday.
"The number of infections is doubling every four days," Jerome Salomon told reporters, adding that the virus was spreading in France "rapidly and intensely".

France reports 108 new coronavirus deaths in last 24 hours: official

France's two-week lockdown to try to stem the coronavirus is likely to be extended, officials said Thursday as the interior minister blasted "idiots" flouting the home confinement rules.
President Emmanuel Macron ordered French residents to stay at home from Tuesday except for essential excursions such as going to the doctor, walking the dog, or going for a solitary run, and banned any gatherings.
People can go to the office only if homeworking is not possible.
But news reports have shown groups of people strolling in parks and the one-metre (three feet) safe inter-personal distance has been frequently ignored.
Interior Minister Christophe Castaner accused people of underestimating the risk, telling Europe 1 radio: "There are people who think they are modern-day heroes by breaking the rules while they are in fact idiots."
Some officials have called for even stricter limits and Paris police are mulling closing riverside walkways -- a move already enforced in Bordeaux.
Macron on ...

France may extend lockdown as 'idiots' flout rules

Doctors wearing face masks on Thursday welcomed patients to a four-star Madrid hotel which was transformed into a care facility for people with mild cases of coronavirus.
The 359-room Gran Hotel Colon is the first in Spain to be repurposed to treat people infected with the virus but the regional government of Madrid plans to turn more empty hotels into healthcare facilities over the coming days.
This will help "alleviate the pressure" on hospitals which are starting to become overcrowded and free up beds for more seriously ill patients, the regional government of Madrid said in a statement.
A steady stream of ambulances transported patients to the Gran Hotel Colon, which is in the centre of Madrid, about a 10-minute walk from the Gregorio Maranon hospital, one of the Spanish capital's biggest.
Medical staff wearing white protective suits, face masks and gloves then began escorting patients inside the building under the glare of TV cameras which were kept at a distance.
"A week ago we .

Madrid hotel transformed into coronavirus hospital

The lack of available tests for COVID-19 means the world is effectively fighting the pandemic blind and may not know the true extent of infection for months if not years, experts said on Thursday.
Because COVID-19 is so infectious -- roughly 2.5 times that of the common cold -- but not everyone presents symptoms, the figure of more than 200,000 confirmed cases tells only a fraction of the story.
Jerry Shaman, a diseases expert at the University of Columbia, told AFP it was "likely" that developed nations are identifying between one in five and one in 10 true infections.
Shaman said there was a variety of reasons, including "test availability, capacity, ignorance (not taking the issue seriously), arrogance (national pride)."
On Tuesday the British government conceded it was likely there were already more than 55,000 COVID-19 infections in the country, far lower than the more than 2,600 confirmed cases so far.
While the number of undetected or non-symptomatic cases likely mean the virus 

AFP

AFP

Page 89 - Afp