The Latest on the effects of the coronavirus outbreak on sports around the world:
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Charlotte Hornets coach James Borrego says he thinks some players could need ”multiple weeks” to get back into true basketball shape if the NBA decides to return to action this season. The league hasn’t played games in nearly six weeks due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Borrego says unlike when there was a lockout – and players gathered routinely for five-on-five pickup games in gyms – he knows some players who don’t have access to a court to work on basketball-specific drills. The Hornets staff is monitoring players and helping them with their conditioning remotely during the lockdown, but Borrego cautions the league needs to be ”very careful” not to rush back too soon because ”nobody wants to get hurt or injured in this time.”
Borrego says when players return to practice, they’ll be monitored individually by the training staff to determine their physical condition.
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The spring prep sports season is officially over in South Carolina.
Gov. Henry McMaster and state education superintendent Molly Spearman announced Wednesday that schools across the state would remain closed through the end of the academic year in early June. That means any chance of high school athletes continuing to play spring sports such as baseball, softball and lacrosse ended with the decision.
Schools have been shut down since March 16 due to the coronavirus pandemic. Prep coaches and athletes held out hope that if schools were opened, they could continue playing. Instead, all competitions, including spring football workouts, were called off.
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Canada has rescheduled its Olympic swimming trials for April 7-11, 2021, in Toronto.
It will be shortened to five days instead of seven, which was the original plan for this year. Selection and nomination policies for the team chosen from the trials will be developed with the Canadian Olympic Committee.
The date change is a result of the Tokyo Games being rescheduled for July 23-Aug. 8, 2021, because of the coronavirus.
Swimming Canada will hold its open water trials April 17-18, 2021, in the Cayman Islands.
Swimming Canada high performance director John Atkinson says that while swimmers are unable to train now, he’s hoping they will resume in this fall.
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A 99-year-old World War II veteran who has raised more than 28 million pounds ($34.5 million) for Britain’s health service during the coronavirus pandemic has been invited to perform one of British sport’s quaintest traditions once the crisis is over.
Tom Moore will get the chance to ring the famous bell at Lord’s cricket ground, signalling the start of a day’s play, as a reward for his fundraising efforts that have become a national rallying point. The job is typically given to former cricketers or figures in the sport.
The offer was made to Moore, a cricket fan, by England captain Joe Root – a fellow Yorkshireman.
”I’d love you to give us a team talk at some point as well,” Root said in a video conversation with Moore, ”and get all the lads in the right frame of mind.”
The Twitter account of Lord’s posted a message to Moore, saying he is ”an inspiration to us all.”
With the aid of a walking frame, Moore walked 100 laps of his garden in eastern England to support workers in Britain’s National Health Service. He wanted to complete the mission before his 100th birthday on April 30, and his family initially set a target of raising 1,000 pounds.
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The Dutch soccer association has canceled the remainder of the women’s league season and cup tournament following a discussion with the clubs.
The KNVB says the consequences of the cancellation will be clarified on Friday when soccer authorities talk with the clubs.
PSV Eindhoven currently leads the women’s league.
The cancellation follows Tuesday’s announcement by the government that its ban on all large-scale events was being extended until Sept. 1.
The KNVB says it also plans to cancel the rest of the men’s season but will discuss the issue with UEFA before making the final decision.
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The French rugby league has canceled the semifinals of its Top 14 league because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The LNR’s executive committee abandoned hosting the semifinals on June 19 and 20 and the final in mid-July in the southern city of Nice but says they could potentially be played before the end of summer if health conditions allow.
The LNR says it is waiting to see what rules the government sets out following the end of lockdown before definitively deciding if a resumption is possible.
France is under lockdown until May 11.
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The Berlin Marathon says the race cannot be held as planned in September because of new restrictions in the city related to the coronavirus pandemic.
City authorities have extended a ban on major events with more than 5,000 people until October 24. More than 62,000 people took part in the marathon last year.
Organizers say they will take time to ”engage with the consequences of the authorities blocking our events, agree on further steps and then inform you.”
There was no mention of any plan to restrict the race to elite runners only. That was the solution used by the Tokyo Marathon on March 1.
The Berlin Marathon is typically one of the fastest in the world. The current men’s world record was set in Berlin by Eliud Kipchoge in 2018.
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More AP sports: https://apnews.com/apf-sports and https://twitter.com/AP-Sports
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