up and down

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/society/article/3047720/chinese-premier-li-keqiang-head-coronavirus-crisis-team-outbreak About 5 million residents left Wuhan before the lockdown because of the deadly coronavirus epidemic and the Spring Festival holiday, mayor Zhou Xianwang revealed on Sunday, as health officials ­warned the virus’ ­ability to spread was ­getting ­stronger. There were about 9 million people remaining in the city after the lockdown, Zhou told a press conference. Of the 2,700 people currently under observation in the city, about 1,000 were likely to be confirmed cases. As of Sunday, Wuhan had 533 confirmed cases. The central government imposed a lockdown on Wuhan and several cities on Thursday hoping to stop the new virus from spreading to other parts of the country. However, many had already left the city for the holiday, while others rushed out after the lockdown was announced on Wednesday night. China, meanwhile, said Premier Li Keqiang would head the high-level group to fight the coronavirus epidemic that has killed 80 people and infected more than 2,500 others, while health officials said the virus’s ability to spread is getting stronger. Beijing city reported five more confirmed cases, including a nine-month-old infant. It is the first confirmed infant case. On Saturday, a two-year-old girl in Guangxi was confirmed to be infected. The Chinese State Council has extended the Lunar New Year holiday to February 2 to curb the spread of the virus, according to state broadcaster CCTV. The holiday, which was initially supposed to last until January 30, is the country’s most important festival and hundreds of millions of rural migrant workers nationwide travel home for it. Suzhou was the first city to announce a holiday extension, saying workers at companies within its jurisdiction should resume work no earlier than February 8. The State Council also said that kindergartens, primary and secondary schools, and colleges will be suspended until further notice from the education ministry. Ma Xiaowei, the minister in charge of China’s National Health Commission (NHC), told a press conference that battling the outbreak was complicated, particularly as it had been discovered that the new virus could be transmitted even during incubation period, which did not happen with Sars (severe acute respiratory syndrome). “From observations, the virus is capable of transmission even during incubation period,” Ma said, adding that the incubation period lasted from one to 14 days. “Some patients have normal temperatures and there are many milder cases. There are hidden carriers,” he said. Ma said also that the virus had adapted to humans and appeared to have become more transmissible. “There are signs showing the virus is becoming more transmissible. These walking ‘contagious agents’ [hidden carriers] make controlling the outbreak a lot more difficult.” The authorities had also not ruled out the possibility of the virus mutating in the future, he said, which meant it could spread to different age groups. To date, most of the people infected are in the 40-60 age range, health officials said earlier. Sars, which killed more than 800 people and infected over 8,000 around the world, typically had an incubation period of two to seven days, and was not infectious during that time. University of Hong Kong microbiologist Yuen Kwok-yung said that how transmissible the virus was during its incubation period depended on the “viral load” in each infection. “If I sneeze on you point blank, you may get a fever and pneumonia tomorrow too,” he said. Ma said that the epidemic was accelerating and “may last for some time”. “It is possible that there will be more cases,” he said. Speaking to the press on Sunday, Gao Fu, head of the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, said the peak of the outbreak had yet to come. “There are trends for an epidemic cycle,” he said. “It is still growing.” However, he said there had yet to be any signs of the virus mutating. Li Bin, deputy minister of the NHC said the authorities that the severe measures they had taken to control the spread of the virus – such as issuing travel bans and locking down cities – would at least delay the peak and “buy time to combat the next stage of the outbreak”. China has closed off 13 cities in Hubei province, which is at the epicentre of the outbreak, while almost the entire country has declared an emergency response. Of all of China’s confirmed infections, more than half are in Hubei. To help tackle the epidemic, Ma said that 2,360 military and civilian doctors and nurses had been sent to Wuhan, the city in which the outbreak was first detected at the end of last month. As the pressure has mounted on the city’s hospitals, the medical system has moved ever closer to collapse. Many people who developed feverish symptoms were turned away by hospitals earlier in the week because there were not enough beds, local residents said earlier. Medical practitioners are also running seriously short of protective kits and are being forced to recycle goggles and masks. Ma said 2,400 hospital beds had been added in Wuhan, and the government was planning to add 5,000 more over the next three days. Wang Jiangping, China’s vice-minister of industry and information technology, said China had the capacity to produce a maximum of 30,000 protective outfits per day, but that was less than a third of what was needed in Hubei. And during the Lunar New Year holiday, manufacturing capacity was only about 40 per cent of normal, he said. The government was working to acquire the 50,000 protective jackets China produces for export every day to send to Hubei, he said. However, the civil affairs ministry issued a statement on Sunday banning charity organisations and NGOs from sending teams to Hubei. Any donations should be sent to government-sanctioned charity organisations in Hubei, such as the Red Cross, and they would be allocated by the Hubei and Wuhan governments as appropriate. The NHC also issued a nationwide plan on containing the epidemic by locking down certain neighbourhood communities in both urban and rural areas. In the case of a neighbourhood community or village having two confirmed cases, it could be declared an epidemic zone and sealed off, it said. A Wuhan resident, who declined to be named, said that checkpoints had been set up in some communities on Sunday. People who had fever symptoms were being screened by medical workers within the community and those needed more attention were sent to hospital, he said. China also imposed a nationwide ban on wildlife trade on Sunday. The outbreak is suspected to have originated at a seafood market in Wuhan, which also sold wild animals. However, a research paper published by medical journal The Lancet on Saturday said the first confirmed case of the viral infection was a person who had not been to that market. When asked if China planned to expand its travel ban to more cities, Li said the authorities would make adjustments as necessary. China is hoping the travel bans will reduce the spread of the outbreak. As a result of the restrictions, rail passenger numbers have fallen by 41 per cent, road travellers by 25 per cent and air passengers by almost 42 per cent on Saturday, the first day of the Lunar New Year. Meanwhile, the United States, France, Australia, Japan and Russia are all preparing to pull their citizens out of Wuhan, while others are ramping up measures to prevent people travelling from infected cities into their territories. Health officials in the US confirmed early Monday the fourth and fifth cases there, one in Los Angeles County, California and the other in Arizona. Both patients had traveled to Wuhan. The ABC reported that more than 100 Australian children were currently trapped in Wuhan.

The Coronavirus could have been preveted from spreading. It is said that before the lockdown of the Wuhan cities, 5 million people from Wuhan have travelled out of Wuhan. That means these 5 million people who have travelled around the whole world could have been a potential spreader of Coronavirus.

Looks like more and more sports events will be cancelled due to this Coronavirus outbreak. Read news that Tokyo 2020 Olympics might be badly affected due to this and also the Olympics might also be put on hold due to the widespread of the Coronavirus as well.

Yes the virus is spreading rapidly in Italy. Worse had to be South Korea with 813 cases recorded today. Coronavirus will continue to be wide spread in Korea on daily basis. This is very worrying.

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2020/feb/26/tokyo-olympic-games-could-be-cancelled-if-coronavirus-not-controlled-ioc-member-says Concern is growing over the impact of the coronavirus on the Olympic Games after new cases in Japan were confirmed and the domestic top-flight football competition was called off until next month. A senior member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said outright cancellation of the Games, rather than postponement or relocation, would be likely if the disease proved too dangerous for the event – which is scheduled to start on 24 July – to go ahead. Dick Pound, a former Canadian swimming champion who has been on the IOC since 1978, estimated there is a three-month window – perhaps a two-month one – to decide the fate of the Tokyo Games, meaning a decision could be put off until late May. “In and around that time, I’d say folks are going to have to ask: ‘Is this under sufficient control that we can be confident about going to Tokyo or not?’” Pound told Associated Press. As the Games draw near, he said, “A lot of things have to start happening. You’ve got to start ramping up your security, your food, the Olympic Village, the hotels. The media folks will be in there, building their studios.” If the IOC decides the games cannot go forward as scheduled in Tokyo, “you’re probably looking at a cancellation”, he said. Three new coronavirus cases were confirmed on Tuesday among users of the same gym in Chiba. The city, just north of Tokyo, is scheduled to host Olympic taekwondo, fencing, wrestling and surfing, as well as four Paralympic events. Sporting events across Japan have already been called off due to the outbreak; all J-League football has been postponed until 15 March, the biggest disruption of the professional game in Japan since the 2011 earthquake and tsunami. The South African Under-23 team has also pulled out of a friendly due to be played against Japan in Kyoto on Thursday, while training for 80,000 Olympic volunteers, which was due to begin on 22 February, has been delayed for at least two months. In addition to professional sport, numerous local competitions, inter-school matches and martial arts tournaments are being postponed or axed. This Sunday’s Tokyo Marathon will feature only a few hundred elite athletes, with nearly 38,000 entrants told they cannot run. The viral outbreak that began in China two months ago has infected more than 80,000 people globally and killed over 2,700, the vast majority of them in China. But the virus has gained a foothold in South Korea, the Middle East and Europe, raising fears of a pandemic. Japan itself has reported four deaths. Some of Japan’s biggest corporations, including Sony, Takeda Pharmaceuticals and telecoms giant NTT, are telling staff to work from home. Many were planning to introduce telework during the Olympics to ease the pressure on public transportation, but are now doing so to avoid the risk of contamination on Tokyo’s crowded trains. The Tokyo Olympic organising committee puts the official budget for the Games at 1.35tn yen ($12.2bn), but the Board of Audit of Japan estimates the true cost, including spending by local authorities and the central government, is more than double that figure. The modern Olympics, which date to 1896, have been cancelled only during wartime. The Olympics in 1940 were supposed to be in Tokyo but were called off because of Japan’s war with China and the second world war. The Rio Games in Brazil went on as scheduled in 2016 despite the outbreak of the Zika virus. Pound repeated the IOC’s stance – that it is relying on consultations with the World Health Organization, a United Nations body, to make any move. As for the possibility of postponement, he said: “You just don’t postpone something on the size and scale of the Olympics. There’s so many moving parts, so many countries and different seasons, and competitive seasons, and television seasons. You can’t just say, ‘We’ll do it in October.’” Pound said moving to another city also seems unlikely “because there are few places in the world that could think of gearing up facilities in that short time to put something on”.

Lingshui China Open, German Open, Polish Open and Vietnam Open have all been postponed due to the widespread of the Coronavirus. Now there is also the probability that All England Open and Swiss Open might also be postponed due to the widespread of Coronavirus in the European Continent as well. We just have to keep following the latest news to know about the latest development. https://bwfbadminton.com/news-single/2020/02/28/important-covid-19-updates/ BWF has published a series of Frequently Asked Questions related to COVID-19 and the different impacts this has on various groups within the badminton community. It includes implications for players and teams related to regulations, entries and withdrawals, rankings and reimbursement if a tournament is postponed or cancelled. COVID-19: Important Information for the Badminton Community With particular reference to Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games qualification, BWF is not at this time planning to make any adjustments to the regulations related to the Olympic qualification period. The announcement states: “It is unfortunate that some tournaments have been postponed or cancelled and BWF appreciates that these tournaments have been part of players’ plans to seek qualification for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games and other tournaments where qualification is required (such as the HSBC BWF World Tour Finals). “Any change to the existing Olympic qualification rules will affect different players both positively or negatively, and with the present level of postponement and cancellation, BWF does not believe that making changes is appropriate. “The postponement or cancellation of tournaments is not within the control of hosts, BWF or the badminton community, but is caused by ongoing developments as a result of COVID-19 in different areas of the world and decisions will be taken based on information provided by public health authorities.” All other tournaments on the BWF calendar within the Olympic qualification period are scheduled to run. BWF and the hosts are closely monitoring the situation in countries where scheduled tournaments are hosted and will inform the badminton community immediately if the status of these tournaments change. The health, safety and wellbeing of players, their entourage, fans, officials and all other concerned parties as the top priority. https://bwfworldtour.bwfbadminton.com/news-single/2020/02/26/bwf-media-statement-on-yonex-german-open-2020-2/ The Badminton World Federation (BWF) can confirm the YONEX German Open 2020 to be staged in Mülheim an der Ruhr next week will no longer take place on its scheduled dates of 3-8 March. The City of Mülheim took the decision earlier today (Wednesday) in line with its own rules and procedures due to restrictions in place over the Covid-19 (Coronavirus) outbreak. “After medical advice from Mülheim’s public health department and a process of consideration, we (City of Mülheim) cancelled the event at the scheduled time,” the city’s statement read. German Badminton Association (GBA) confirmed the decision by the City of Mülheim shortly after. No concrete plans or decisions have been made in regards to the immediate future of the tournament other than that it won’t occur next week. BWF and GBA accept the decision citing the welfare of players, their entourage, fans and officials at the tournament as the main priority. The tournament is a Super 300 event on the HSBC BWF World Tour as well as being an Olympic qualifier. The BWF is continuing to monitor all official updates on Covid-19 (Coronavirus) with no change to the intention to stage other HSBC BWF World Tour or BWF-sanctioned tournaments. Polish Open 2020 Postponed Polish Badminton Association (PBA) today also postponed the Polish Open 2020 – an upcoming Badminton Europe circuit tournament. PBA said in a letter to Badminton Europe: “Due to the growing sanitary and epidemiological threat posed by Covid-19 (Coronavirus), the Board of the Polish Badminton Association, after consultation with the District Sanitary and Epidemiological Station in Krakow, the Crisis Management Department in Krakow, the Department of Social Affairs, and the Ministry of Sport and Health, have decided to postpone the Polish Open 2020.” The tournament, set for Krakow 26-29 March, was a qualifying event for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. New dates are being earmarked but the tournament will no longer fall inside the Olympic qualification period. https://olympics.bwfbadminton.com/news-single/2020/02/25/bwf-statement-on-postponement-of-vietnam-international-challenge-2020/ The Badminton World Federation (BWF) can confirm the decision to postpone the CIPUTRA HANOI – YONEX SUNRISE Vietnam International Challenge 2020 until 2-7 June, due to continued concerns over the Covid-19 outbreak. The decision was made on the advice of the Vietnam Sports Administration linked to strict health protection restrictions in place in Vietnam. BWF accepts that all relevant health, safety and logistical risks were considered by Vietnam Badminton Federation (VBF), Vietnam Sports Administration, and Badminton Asia Confederation (BAC) in making the decision and that the welfare of players, their entourage, fans and officials at the tournament was the main priority. The tournament was due to take place from 24-29 March 2020 and was a qualifying event for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. BWF, BAC and VBF as the tournament hosts are in dialogue with Member Associations and players to adjust travel plans and revise tournament planning. Considering the new 2-7 June date, ranking points from this event will no longer contribute to Olympic qualifying as it will be outside the qualification window. The BWF is continuing to monitor all official updates on Covid-19 and is mindful that HSBC BWF World Tour and other BWF-sanctioned tournaments may be affected, but there are no concrete plans or decisions at this point to change the status of any other events. BWF will continue to update the entire badminton community on any further announcements related to the situation.

Lots of tournaments have beden either cancelled, moved or postponed which is bad news. Somehow in the end if the Coronavirus is still spreading vastly there is a very high possibility that even the Tokyo 2020 Olympics will be cancelled. Here is the latest updates of the Coronavirus. Confirmed Cases and Deaths by Country, Territory, or Conveyance The coronavirus COVID-19 is affecting 62 countries and territories around the world and 1 international conveyance (the Diamond Princess cruise ship harbored in Yokohama, Japan). Country, Other Total Cases New Cases Total Deaths New Deaths Active Cases Total Recovered Serious, Critical China 79,257 +433 2,835 +47 37,121 39,301 7,664 S. Korea 3,150 +813 17 +1 3,109 24 10 Italy 1,128 +239 29 +8 1,049 50 105 Diamond Princess 705 6 689 10 36 Iran 593 +205 43 +9 427 123 Japan 241 +8 5 204 32 20 Singapore 102 +4 30 72 7 Hong Kong 93 2 61 30 6 Germany 79 +5 63 16 2 France 73 +16 2 59 12 1 USA 66 +3 59 7 1 Spain 50 +17 48 2 2 Kuwait 45 45 Thailand 42 +1 14 28 2 Bahrain 41 +3 41 Taiwan 39 +5 1 33 5 1 Australia 25 10 15 Malaysia 25 3 22 U.K. 23 +3 15 8 U.A.E. 21 +2 16 5 2 Switzerland 19 +4 19 Canada 16 +1 13 3 Vietnam 16 0 16 Iraq 13 +5 13 Sweden 12 +1 12 Macao 10 4 6 Austria 9 +2 9 Israel 7 6 1 Lebanon 7 +3 7 Norway 7 +1 7 Croatia 6 +1 6 Netherlands 6 +4 6 Oman 6 5 1 Greece 4 4 Pakistan 4 +2 4 Philippines 3 1 0 2 Denmark 3 +1 3 Finland 3 2 1 Georgia 3 +1 3 India 3 0 3 Mexico 3 +1 3 Romania 3 2 1 Russia 2 0 2 Afghanistan 1 1 Algeria 1 1 Azerbaijan 1 1 Belarus 1 1 Belgium 1 0 1 Brazil 1 1 Cambodia 1 0 1 Ecuador 1 +1 1 1 Egypt 1 0 1 Estonia 1 1 Iceland 1 1 Lithuania 1 1 North Macedonia 1 1 Monaco 1 1 Nepal 1 0 1 New Zealand 1 1 Nigeria 1 1 Qatar 1 +1 1 San Marino 1 1 1 Sri Lanka 1 0 1 Total: 85,983 1,786 2,941 65 43,239 39,803 7,861 As can be seen from the table above we have 9 countries such as Sri Lanka, Nepal, Egypt, Cambodia, Belgium, Russia, India, Phillippines and Vietnam with no more cases left. These 9 countries have been doing a good job to stop the Coronavirus from spreading in their respective countries. Next is Malaysia who have 25 cases but 22 patient have healed leaving them with 3 more patients. Denmark, Georgia, Mexico and Malaysia now have only 3 cases left. Macao have only 4 cases left after 6 patient have healed. Greece, Pakistan and Macao are left with 4 cases thus far. The most worrying one had to be China, South Korea, Diamond Princess international conveyance, Italy, Iran and Japan who have high number of cases. Italy has now become the place to spread the Coronavirus in the European continent Meanwhile South Korea has turned into little China with many cases reported on daily basis. South Korea has now reached the red alert critical stage together with China. Somehow, Tokyo 2020 Olympics could be badly affected as Japan is also one of those high risk countries where the Coronavirus still continue to spread. When many people gather together in large groups and have close contacts it is easier for the Coronavirus to spread. Hence if the Tokyo 2020 Olympics is held just as usual, the probability of athletes being contracted with Coronavirus is very high. Due to this the Tokyo 2020 Olympics might be affected as well.

Too bad to see the whole of China and Hong Kong team missed out this time and cannot get a chance to play in BATC 2020. Nonetheless this year BATC 2020 we have really get to see some upsets. Great men team such as Korea missed out and lose in the quarter finals. Korea team still managed to reach the semifinals in BATC 2018 but in year 2020 they lose in the quarter finals. As for the India men team they had done a great job and supassed expectations to reach the semifinals. India team has never had a chance to reach the semifinals of any BATC team event before this. Congratulations to the Indian men team. Another great upset also created by the Malaysian team when they defeated Japan in the semifinals to reach the finals. Indonesia is the defending champion for BATC men team and very likely Indonesia will surely get to become the champion again for sure in BATC 2020. Nonetheless Indonesia men team still remain very strong and they have proven it. It is estimated that Indonesia team will win the Thomas Cup in year 2020 as well. As for the BATC women team we also have lots of upsets. Thailand women team have improved so much that they are able to enter the semifinals of BATC 2020. Malaysia women team also created upset when they somehow reached the semifinals of BATC for the very first time. Korean women team continued to showcase their power and manage to enter the finals. A good job done. Japan women team is also very strogn and have played so well to reach the finals. Anyway Japan women team stand a very high chance to become the champion in BATC 2020. Nonetheless Japan women still remain very strong and they have proven it when Japan won the Uber Cup back in year 2018. It is estimated that Japan team will win the Uber Cup in year 2020 as well.

So happy that the Australian team have qualified to play in Thomas and Uber Cup 2020. Anyway also happy to know that 5 European countries have also qualified to play in Thomas and Uber Cup 2020. This year the BEC has been great and yes we do see upsets happening as well. Anyway Denmark as the whole team is still the best team in Europe.

Have to admit that Badminton Europe did an excellent job to provide full life streaming for all the different courts throughout the whole tournament. A good job done and the live streaming quality is very good as well. Congratulations to BE for doing such an excellent job.

The whole Hong Kong team is left fuming in anger. As of now the teams who have qualified to play in Thomas and Uber Cup 2020 have been announced. Thomas Cup Host - Denmark Trophy holder - China Asia - Malaysia Asia - Japan Asia - Indonesia Asia - India Europe - France Europe - Netherlands Europe - Russia Europe - England Africa - Algeria Pan Am - Unsure Ocenia - Australia By ranking - Chinese Taipei By ranking - Korea By ranking - Thailand Uber Cup Host - Denmark Trophy holder - Japan Asia - Malaysia Asia - China Asia - Korea Asia - Thailand Europe - France Europe - GErmany Europe - Russia Europe - Scotland Africa - Egypt Pan Am - Unsure Ocenia - Australia By ranking - Chinese Taipei By ranking - Indonesia By ranking - India Well as can be seen from the lists above, Hong Kong could not qualify to play in Thomas and Uber Cup 2020. To play in Thomas and Uber Cup 2020, Hong Kong team must reach at least the semifinals of BATC as they do not have the high team ranking. However, Hong Kong team has been barred from playing in BATC held in Phillipines in the pretext of Coronavirus. Both China and Hong Kong team have been barred from playing in BATC. China despite being barred from playing in BATC can still qualify to play in Thomas and Uber Cup 2020 due to their high team ranking. Therefore Hong Kong team has missed the chance as they have been barred and not allowed to play in BATC. The whole Hong Kong team is now left fuming in anger. What a sad thing to have happened to the whole Hong Kong team.

@Vic Liu The redraw for badminton Asia team championship will be held tomorrow.

@Vic Liu https://www.schengenvisainfo.com/news/coronavirus-eu-to-restrict-entry-for-chinese-nationals/ Coronavirus: EU to Restrict Entry for Chinese Nationals Following the intensification of the Coronavirus outbreak, the European Union has moved on to take the necessary steps to prevent a possible spread of the virus in its territory. Europe has taken measures at a time when eight cases of infected persons were detected within its territory, four of which in France and four others in Germany, by activating a mechanism that enables the member states to improve prevention, preparedness and response to disasters, both natural and man-made. Within the frame of this mechanism’s activation, the EU may go to extra lengths to prevent the virus from further spreading into its territory. Sources of SchengenVisaInfo.com within the European Union have confirmed that the block is preparing to tighten entry conditions for Chinese nationals and those who have traveled to China in recent months, in a bid to prevent the situation getting out of control. “Immediately after the outbreak of the Coronavirus, representatives of the Member States have been summoned by France, where by the way, have already been detected at least two cases of Coronavirus infection. The block has already decided to activate the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, but if the virus keeps spreading at the current tempo, the EU may introduce entry restrictions by the end of the week to Chinese nationals and recent visitors to mainland China,” one of the sources said. The source could not, however, give any assurance whether by “entry restrictions” the EU was planning to bar nationals of the affected countries from entering, or only by imposing more screening procedures. “Suspension of visa issuance for the nationals of a few countries in addition to China, is also an option, if the situation does not improve for the better, of course,” the source confirms. EU’s move comes immediately after three Asian countries restricted visa issuance to Chinese nationals. These countries are Sri Lanka, Malaysia, and Kazakhstan. Immediately after them the Philippines and Singapore followed announcing visa restrictions for residents of the Hubei province. EU Activates Civil Protection Mechanism On Tuesday, January 28, the European Commission announced a decision of the block to activate the EU Civil Protection Mechanism following a request for assistance from France to provide consular support to EU citizens in Wuhan, China. “As the Coronavirus outbreak intensifies, the EU Civil Protection Mechanism has been activated on request from France. Two planes will be mobilized to repatriate EU citizens from the Wuhan area to Europe,” the European Commission announced first through twitter. EU Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarčič announced in a press release of the Commission that two aircraft will be mobilized through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism to repatriate EU citizens from the Wuhan area to Europe. “Our EU Emergency Response Coordination Centre is working 24/7 and is in constant contact with the Member States, the EU Delegations in the region and the Chinese embassy in Brussels. Further EU support can be mobilized if requested,” he said. Whereas, the Commissioner responsible for Health and Food Security Stella Kyriakides said that the Commission stands ready to support the Member States and ensure a strong and coordinated EU response to the developing situation of the Coronavirus, outside and within the Union. “We will continue to monitor the situation closely with the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control and remain in close contact with our Member States,” she said. The EU Civil Protection Mechanism is a tool that strengthens cooperation between the Member States and the Participating States in the field of civil protection, with a view to improving prevention, preparedness and response to disasters. When the scale of an emergency overwhelms the response capabilities of a country, it can request assistance via the Mechanism. Once activated, the Mechanism coordinates assistance made available by its Member States/Participating States through spontaneous offers. EU Airlines and Airports’ Response to Coronavirus Outbreak British Airways has become the first airline to suspend all flights to mainland China, following a warning of the UK Foreign Office to its citizens on travel to China. “We have suspended all flights to and from mainland China with immediate effect following advice from the Foreign Office against all but essential travel,” the company said in a statement. Whereas, a senior press expert from the Stuttgart Airport told SchengenVisaInfo.com that currently there are no restraints due to the virus as the Stuttgart Airport has no direct flights to China, Japan or adjacent countries. “So far, the authorities in charge do not have imposed any measures, nor do we know about upcoming requirements. In order to inform our passengers and visitors in the terminal building, posters in German, English, and Chinese give advice regarding hygiene,” the expert said. The deadly Coronavirus has expanded to almost 20 countries, while the death toll had reached over 130 people and about 6000 cases have been reported. The Chinese city of Wuhan, home to 11 million in residents, in the Hubei province is the epicenter of the disease, which as of January 23, 2020, has been shut down. Airports and railways in Wuhan have also shut down to prevent a further spread of the virus.

@Vic Liu From the examples that I have given above, a lot of European countries have started to bar China citizens from entering their countries. Thus far American, Asia, Austrlia and Europen Continent have imposed bar on China citizens from entering their countries.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-02-02/coronavirus-these-countries-airlines-restrict-travel-to-china The outbreak of the coronavirus has prompted dozens of nations and airlines to restrict travel, increasingly isolating the country of more than 1.3 billion people. Nearly 10,000 flights were canceled between the outbreak of the virus and Jan. 31, according to Cirium, which provides data and research on the travel industry. The World Health Organization has so far said that such limits on trade and travel aren’t needed to control the spread of the virus. Here are the countries, territories and airlines that have travel restrictions on China. Australia Australia will deny entry to anyone arriving from mainland China, except for Australian citizens, residents or their family members, and air crew. It has also warned against any travel to all of mainland China. Australia’s largest airline Qantas Airways Ltd. will suspend services to mainland China from Feb. 9. Canada Canada advised citizens to avoid non-essential travel to China. Air Canada has halted flights to Beijing and Shanghai. The suspension is expected to last until Feb. 29. Egypt Egypt Air indefinitely suspended flights to mainland China. The airline connects to Hangzhou, Beijing and Guangzhou. Finland Finnair will cancel all flights to and from mainland China between Feb. 6 and Feb. 29 France France urged citizens not to travel to China. Air France will exit China until Feb. 9. Germany Lufthansa suspended services to China until Feb. 9. Hong Kong Hong Kong has barred residents of China’s Hubei province, where the outbreak is centered, from entering the city. The government has appeared to open the door for more controls on travel from the mainland, with an official saying it could shorten opening times for ports, limit transportation and introduce laws to curb cross-border traffic. Cathay Pacific will cut the capacity of its flights to China by 50% or more through March. Indonesia Indonesia is temporarily banning flights to and from mainland China from Feb. 3 and won’t allow those who have been there in recent weeks to enter or transit. The government has suspended free visa and visa-on-arrival services for Chinese citizens living in the mainland and called on Indonesians to temporarily stop traveling there. Indonesia has five domestic airlines flying to China: PT Garuda Indonesia, PT Citilink Indonesia, PT Lion Mentari Airlines, PT Sriwijaya Air and PT Batik Air Indonesia. The temporary flight ban applies to foreign airlines flying from China to Indonesia, including for transit. India India said Chinese passport holders and those who reside in China who have electronic visas to India won’t be able to enter. Air India and IndiGo have suspended flights between some Indian cities and China. Israel Israel will refuse entry to foreign nationals coming from China. Carrier El Al suspended flights to Beijing until March 25. Italy Italy suspended all flights from China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan until Apr. 28. Japan Japan has urged its citizens not to travel to China. It has barred entry to people with symptoms of the coronavirus. Kenya Kenya Airways suspended flights to and from Guangzhou until further notice. Mongolia Mongolia closed its border with China until March 2. Morocco Royal Air Maroc suspended direct flights to China until Feb. 29. Myanmar Myanmar said it will suspend the issuance of visas-on-arrival for all visitors from China. New Zealand New Zealand will deny entry to foreigners traveling from mainland China. The ban, effective Feb. 3, covers anyone who is traveling from or has transited through China, and will last up to 14 days. It has also raised its travel advice about all of mainland China to “do not travel,” the highest level. Air New Zealand will cut its Shanghai service from daily to four times a week from Feb. 18 to March 31 Netherlands KLM suspended direct flights to some Chinese cities and reduced the number of weekly flights to Shanghai. North Korea North Korea shut its borders to visitors from China on Jan. 22. Oman Oman’s aviation authority suspended all flights between the sultanate and China. Pakistan Pakistan stopped flights to Wuhan and Hubei, but will reopen other routes in mainland China. It had delayed opening its northern border with China, while Karachi Port Trust, operator of nation’s largest port, had asked immigration authorities not to allow crew on foreign vessels to disembark. Philippines The Philippines widened a travel ban previously imposed on visitors from Hubei province to all of China, including Hong Kong and Macau, while prohibiting Filipinos from traveling to those areas. Qatar Qatar Airways is suspending flights to China starting from Feb. 3 until further notice. Russia Russia suspended visa-free tourist travel to China and temporarily blocked Chinese citizens from reaching Russia over the Mongolian border. It will also stop processing documents for Chinese nationals to enter Russia for jobs, along with permits to hire workers from China. Visa-free travel was part of an agreement the two nations worked out in 2018. Rwanda RwandAir halted flights to and from China and will review the decision this month. Singapore Singapore blocked the entry and transit of people who had traveled to mainland China in the previous 14 days. Visas of China citizens to visit Singapore have been suspended, including those already issued. Singapore Airlines and SilkAir said they would reduce their frequency of service to mainland China in February due to the entry restrictions issued by the local authorities. South Korea From Feb. 4, South Korea will temporarily ban foreigners who have visited or stayed in Hubei within 14 days of entering. Seoul will also suspend its no-visa favor for Chinese tourists to Jeju Island for now. South Korea is also suspending tourism to China. Korean Air is stopping flights to Wuhan until Feb. 22 and will reduce services on other mainland China routes. Air Seoul suspended flights indefinitely between Incheon and the Chinese cities of Zhangjiajie and Linyi. Spain Iberia Airways suspended its flight to Shanghai, the only route it operates to China, through February. Taiwan Taiwan slapped an entry ban to residents of Hubei as well as those from the southern Guangdong province. It won’t rule out extending the ban to more Chinese provinces if necessary. Mandarin Airlines suspended flights from Taiwan to Wuhan until the end of February. Tanzania Air Tanzania postponed its maiden February flights to China from Dar es Salaam. Turkey Turkish Airlines suspended flights to Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai and Xi’an until Feb. 9. U.K. British Airways halted daily routes to Beijing and Shanghai. Virgin Atlantic ceased flights to Shanghai for 14 days from Feb. 1 U.S. The U.S. is temporarily barring entry to foreign nationals who have visited China and pose a risk of spreading the illness, unless they are immediate relatives of U.S. citizens or permanent residents. Flights from China would be funneled through just seven U.S. airports. The State Department issued its highest level do-not-travel advisory for China. Delta Air Lines Inc. and American Airlines Group Inc. suspended all flights to China to as late as the end of April. United Airlines will suspend service to Beijing, Shanghai and Chengdu from Feb. 6. Vietnam Vietnam ordered companies to stop accepting Chinese workers returning to the country after the Lunar New Year holidays. The suspension also applies to foreign workers traveling through Chinese regions affected by the outbreak. The aviation authority canceled all flight permits and suspended new flight licenses for airlines operating between the country and China.

Many countries in the European continent have started to bar China citizens from entering their country.

By looking at the latest data statistics below, I can roughly understand why such action is taken. Confirmed Cases and Deaths by Country and Territory as of 9th February, 2020. Country, Territory Total Cases Feb 9 Cases Total Deaths Feb 9 Deaths Total Recovered Total Severe Region China 37,226 +28 812 +1 2,856 6,188 Asia Japan 96 +7 4 Asia Singapore 40 2 4 Asia Thailand 32 10 1 Asia S. Korea 27 +3 3 Asia Hong Kong 26 1 Asia Taiwan 18 +1 1 Asia Malaysia 17 +1 1 Asia Australia 15 5 Oceania Vietnam 14 +1 3 Asia Germany 14 Europe USA 12 3 N.America France 11 1 Europe Macao 10 1 Asia U.A.E. 7 Asia Canada 7 N.America Philippines 3 1 Asia India 3 Asia U.K. 3 Europe Italy 3 2 Europe Russia 2 Europe Spain 2 +1 Europe Finland 1 1 Europe Sweden 1 Europe Nepal 1 Asia Sri Lanka 1 1 Asia Cambodia 1 1 Asia Belgium 1 Europe

Basically China athletes by now have been barred from playing in any tournaments held in European, American, Australia and also Asian continent. A big blow to China athletes as all the countries have choosen health as their main priorities. Reason given is China athletes will spread Coronavirus so there is nothing to be done here.

Yes it is a very sad news for the whole of the Hong Kong team. The Hong Kong team have by now become disqualified from playing in Thomas and Uber Cup 2020 and this has left them fuming in anger. Nothing can be done when the Phillipines side said they will not allow any China or Hong Kong citizens to enter their country and shut the door on them. So pitiful for the whole Hong Kong team. The whole Hong Kong team protested in anger but to no avail. To the Phillipines health comes first.

https://www.scmp.com/sport/hong-kong/article/3049135/coronavirus-hong-kong-badminton-stars-face-being-barred-next-weeks Coronavirus: Hong Kong badminton stars face being barred from next week’s Asia Team Championships in Manila Twenty-strong Hong Kong men’s and women’s squads, headed by Angus Ng and Cheung Ngan-yi, are chasing precious ranking points for Olympics Philippines has banned all travellers from China, including Hong Kong, because of the spreading coronavirus Hong Kong badminton authorities are seeking support from regional governing bodies as the city’s players face being barred by the Philippines from next week’s Asia Team Championships in Manila because of the deadly coronavirus. The team, comprising 10 men and 10 women and headed by newly crowned Thailand Masters champion Angus Ng Ka-long and Cheung Ngan-yi, are due to leave on Friday as they seek to secure Olympic qualification points. “We hope this can be resolved swiftly,” said head coach Tim He Yiming. “As far as we understand, all relevant bodies are working hard on the issue, including the Asian Badminton Federation and the Hong Kong Badminton Association. “Every tournament is important at this stage as the Olympic qualification is due to finish in two months and if we can’t take part in the event, it will cost some of the players dearly.” The Philippines this week introduced travel bans covering all persons coming directly from China and its two special administrative regions, Hong Kong and Macau. Hong Kong men’s number two Lee Cheuk-yiu is 15th on the qualification list and must hold his position in the top 16 position until qualification ends in April to be eligible as the second player from Hong Kong behind Ng for the 2020 Tokyo Games. Ng and Cheung, who are almost certain to qualify, also want to strengthen their positions for a better draw in the Olympics, as does the mixed doubles pair of Tang Chun-man and Tse Ying-suet, the world number nine. Hong Kong is left fuming with anger as they might miss out from getting a chance to feature and play in Thomas and Uber Cup 2020. Badminton Asia Team Championship isvery important as those countries who reached the minimum quarter finals wqill be the 8 countries to represent Asia continent to play in Thomas and Uber Cup 2020. Countries such as China and Hong Kong have been barred from playing in this team tournament which will be held in Philippines next week. As for China team they have no problem as they have virtually qualified to play in Thomas and Uber Cup 2020 on merit based on their high team ranking. However the same cannot be said for Hong Kong team who have a low team ranking and they need to reach the quarter finals in BATC to enable them to qualify and play in Thomas and Uber Cup 2020. Not being able to play in BATC has jeopardised their hopes to qualify and play in Thomas and Uber Cup 2020. This has left the whole Hong Kong team fuming in anger over such unfair treatment. The reason here is simple a lot of countries have started to bar China and Hong Kong citizens from coming to their country. Hence athletes for all the different sports in China and Hong Kong are at the receiving end as more countries have barred China citizens from entering their countries. China athletes will also have to skip all the tournaments held in European, American and Australia as these 3 continents have started to bar China citizens from entering their countries due to coronavirus that is spreading rapidly.

There will be a redraw for BATC tomorrow. This is due to China and Hong Kong team who have been barred from playing in BATC and also the India women team who pulled out at the very last minute. A fresh new draw will be conducted on Monday and by Monday there will surely be a new grouping for all the different countries.

Hong Kong is left fuming with anger as they might miss out from getting a chance to feature and play in Thomas and Uber Cup 2020. Badminton Asia Team Championship isvery important as those countries who reached the minimum quarter finals wqill be the 8 countries to represent Asia continent to play in Thomas and Uber Cup 2020. Countries such as China and Hong Kong have been barred from playing in this team tournament which will be held in Philippines next week. As for China team they have no problem as they have virtually qualified to play in Thomas and Uber Cup 2020 on merit based on their high team ranking. However the same cannot be said for Hong Kong team who have a low team ranking and they need to reach the quarter finals in BATC to enable them to qualify and play in Thomas and Uber Cup 2020. Not being able to play in BATC has jeopardised their hopes to qualify and play in Thomas and Uber Cup 2020. This has left the whole Hong Kong team fuming in anger over such unfair treatment. The reason here is simple a lot of countries have started to bar China and Hong Kong citizens from coming to their country. Hence athletes for all the different sports in China and Hong Kong are at the receiving end as more countries have barred China citizens from entering their countries. China athletes will also have to skip all the tournaments held in European, American and Australia as these 3 continents have started to bar China citizens from entering their countries due to coronavirus that is spreading rapidly.

https://www.scmp.com/sport/hong-kong/article/3049135/coronavirus-hong-kong-badminton-stars-face-being-barred-next-weeks Coronavirus: Hong Kong badminton stars face being barred from next week’s Asia Team Championships in Manila Twenty-strong Hong Kong men’s and women’s squads, headed by Angus Ng and Cheung Ngan-yi, are chasing precious ranking points for Olympics Philippines has banned all travellers from China, including Hong Kong, because of the spreading coronavirus Hong Kong badminton authorities are seeking support from regional governing bodies as the city’s players face being barred by the Philippines from next week’s Asia Team Championships in Manila because of the deadly coronavirus. The team, comprising 10 men and 10 women and headed by newly crowned Thailand Masters champion Angus Ng Ka-long and Cheung Ngan-yi, are due to leave on Friday as they seek to secure Olympic qualification points. “We hope this can be resolved swiftly,” said head coach Tim He Yiming. “As far as we understand, all relevant bodies are working hard on the issue, including the Asian Badminton Federation and the Hong Kong Badminton Association. “Every tournament is important at this stage as the Olympic qualification is due to finish in two months and if we can’t take part in the event, it will cost some of the players dearly.” The Philippines this week introduced travel bans covering all persons coming directly from China and its two special administrative regions, Hong Kong and Macau. Hong Kong men’s number two Lee Cheuk-yiu is 15th on the qualification list and must hold his position in the top 16 position until qualification ends in April to be eligible as the second player from Hong Kong behind Ng for the 2020 Tokyo Games. Ng and Cheung, who are almost certain to qualify, also want to strengthen their positions for a better draw in the Olympics, as does the mixed doubles pair of Tang Chun-man and Tse Ying-suet, the world number nine.

Thank you very much for posting this news. This news have not been posted yet. Yes you are right. Lots of sports tournaments scheduled to be held in China has been postponed as the Coronavirus has spread to the whole of China in different districts.

Thank you very much for your good suggestions.