Kuala Lumpur [Malaysia]: The Badminton World Federation (BWF) on Wednesday shifted the Asia Championships 2020 from Wuhan, China, the epicentre of the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, to Manila, in the Philippines.
The decision was confirmed by Badminton Asia and the event will now be held from April 21-26.
The championships fall within the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games qualification window and is one of the last opportunities for athletes to qualify for the Olympics Games.
Badminton Asia revealed it had been working closely with the Philippine Badminton Association (PBA) to secure visas for all athletes for the individual championships.
"We have been trying to secure visa approval for all players and officials so they can be granted entry into Manila for this important and prestigious tournament," the statement read.
"We would like to take this opportunity to thank the president of the Philippine Badminton Association and relevant staff, together with the Government of the Philippines for assisting on this matter," it added.
Global deaths due to coronavirus outbreak rose above 3,000 with the new count in China mainland rising to 2,912. The deadly virus that originated in China late last year continues to spread around the world and has infected more than 80,000 people.
