Italy suspends all sport until April 3 for the crisis caused by the coronavirus

The Italian Olympic Committee demands to stop any sporting activity and urges the Government to suspend Series A.

The Italian National Olympic Committee (CONI) has announced the suspension of “all sports activities” in the country until next April 3, as a measure to contain the coronavirus outbreak expansion, and has requested the Prime Minister, Giuseppe Conte, to issue a “specific decree” that allows to stop national competitions such as the A series.

“Confirming that in every action and circumstance the protection of health is the highest priority of all, the CONI unanimously established that all sports activities at all levels are suspended until April 3, 2020,” the agency statement said. after a meeting held at the Itlico Forum.

For this, at the assembly, organized by the president of CONI, Giovanni Malag, and attended by representatives of the Team Sports Federations, it has been agreed to ask the Italian Government, specifically the prime minister, to issue “a specific decree“that allows to fulfill the decision taken this Monday.

Thus, the suspension of competitions such as Series A will be forced, which at the moment is kept going with a large part of the games being played behind closed doors, especially in the north of the country. In addition, he asks regions to issue ordinances that conform to the decrees of the prime minister to “not create divergent decisions in the various territories.”

However, remember that international competitions, both for clubs and national teams, “do not fall within the jurisdictional availability” of the CONI, and, therefore, “cannot be regulated by today's decisions.” At that point they will enter tournaments such as the Champions League or the Europa League.

Finally, in addition to requesting “harmonize calendars and events” to meet the deadlines of the Olympic qualifications, the CONI requested the Government to develop “an economic support plan” to compensate for “the inconveniences and emergencies” to which the Italian sport has faced “with responsibility and sense of duty”