As it has in all walks of life, the worsening coronavirus pandemic has continued to affect sport in the Goulburn Valley, as well as exports from the region.
Bowls Victoria has already made the call to cancel the upcoming Region Sides event that was the bring the best bowlers in the state to Shepparton on April 3-5.
In a statement the governing body said it was making the decision early in order to help facilitate the chance for those who had already booked accommodation to be refunded.
“The Bowls Victoria Region Sides in Shepparton has been cancelled for 2020. We have made this decision early as a result of many queries and in the hope that accommodation bookings can be cancelled and refunded,” Bowls Victoria said.
“At this stage, State Champions Week (including under-18 and over-60s) will continue although will be players, managers and coaches only and therefore spectator-free.
“The much anticipated and new BV Awards Night is unfortunately postponed indefinitely.
“Champion of State Pennant (May 2020) at Moama is being discussed at present and we will advise accordingly as we receive more direction from government health authorities.”
Swimming Victoria and Swimming Australia have made similar decisions, affecting local swimmers.
“After significant consultation and deliberation, we have decided to cancel the Country and Metro All Junior and Country Interdistrict competitions,” Swimming Victoria said.
“We understand this will be disappointing for many swimmers, coaches and parents. Also, we apologise for any inconvenience that this decision may cause to some families.
“However, we have taken this conservative approach because the health and safety ofthe whole Victorian swimming community is and always will be our overriding priority. In the coming days we will investigate available options, if any, to reschedule these events as well as continue to monitor the coronavirus situation so that we can make decisions concerning the remaining competitions on our 2019-20 calendar.”
The Australian Age Swimming Championships — and their open age counterpart — have also been cancelled due to the covid-19 outbreak.
Athletics Australia has also cancelled the Australian Junior Track and Field Championships and postponed the Australian Senior Track and Field Championships to a yet-to-be-determined date.
“We are all deeply distressed to have to make this decision and understand the impact this will have on our athletics community,” Athletics Australia president Mark Arbib said.
“We must put the health and safety of our athletes, officials, staff, volunteers and spectators at the forefront of all decision making.”
The Melbourne Grand Prix scheduled for the weekend was also cancelled, with Shepparton product Garry Jacobson qualifying in 12th position before the decision was made.
“I think it's good to prioritise everyone's health and roll on at the next one,” Jacobson said.
“Glad to finish (Thursday) with some good pace, cheers team.”
At this stage Saturday's CKH Painting Shepparton Cup at the Shepparton Greyhound Racing Club will go ahead, but the bells and whistles which usually come with it have been cancelled.
“Please note that all previously advertised kids activities and entertainment has been cancelled,” the club said.
And as reported previously, Basketball Victoria has suspended all BV related programs, events and leagues "until further notice", leaving the Shepparton Gators’ Big V campaign on hold before it began.
● As this is an unprecedented and evolving situation, this is unlikely to be an exhaustive list of affected events. If you know of a local sporting event that has been cancelled or amended due to the coronavirus outbreak, contact sport@sheppnews.com.au or phone 5820 3228. We will keep you informed as more information comes to light.
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