Comrades Marathon Association (CMA) Chairperson, Cheryl Winn, says at this stage no decision has been taken regarding the 2020 race. The Comrades Marathon is scheduled to take place in June.
This after President Cyril Ramaphosa announced the banning of gatherings of more than 100 people.
President #Ramaphosa: Gatherings of more than 100 people will be prohibited. Mass celebrations of upcoming national days such as #HumanRightsDay and other large government events will be cancelled.
#CoronaVirusSA— PresidencyZA (@PresidencyZA) March 15, 2020
Winn says from Ramaphosa’s address, it was not clear how long the ban will take. She says a CMA special board meeting has been called this week.
“The Comrades Marathon is scheduled for the 14th of June. It was unclear from the president’s address as to how long the period of restrictions on gatherings of a 100 people or more will last. He did speak about schools being closed until after the Easter holidays, which is long before the Comrades Marathon is due to take place. We have already called a special board meeting this week and I think from tomorrow morning we start to get a lot more information,” says Winn.
On Sunday, Ramaphosa declared a national state of disaster following an increase in confirmed coronavirus cases to 61 in South Africa.
People have also been encouraged to limit physical contact such as hugs and handshakes. Ramaphosa has encouraged people to rather opt for the shoulder greeting.
President #Ramaphosa: We have now declared a national state of disaster in terms of the Disaster Management Act.
#CoronaVirusSA— PresidencyZA (@PresidencyZA) March 15, 2020
Below is President Cyril Ramaphosa’s statement:
Below is a timeline of confirmed coronavirus cases in South Africa
