The world badminton elite will have to be patient. The international federation (BWF) announces in a press release that it has suspended all competitions on its calendar until the end of July 2020. Among them, four stages of the World Tour, the Australian Open, the Thai Open, the Indonesia and Russia. Scheduled even later in the season, the finals of the Thomas and Uber Cup, one of the high points of the international badminton season, are also threatened. Scheduled for Aarhus, Denmark, they had already been rescheduled from August 15 to 23, 2020. But the recent decision by the Danish government to ban all “large gatherings” in the country until the end of August raises concerns a serious threat to the event. The BWF explains in a press release that it is currently discussing with the Danish sports authorities to find out whether the event falls into the category of large gatherings. The BWF Annual General Meeting is to be held in conjunction with the Thomas and Uber Cup Finals. It too could disappear from the calendar.
