Nanjing 2023 athletics show postponed

Article posted by Coliseum, September 5^th, 2022

Image: Populous

The World Athletics Council has decided to postpone the World Athletics Indoor Championships Nanjing 2023 (China), scheduled for March 17^th-19^th, 2023, until March 2025 (exact dates to be confirmed).

‘World Athletics’ stated that the above decision was taken with the agreement of both the Nanjing Organising Committee and the Chinese Athletic Association (CAA), due to the ongoing pandemic conditions in China.

The World Athletics, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation (from 1912 to 2001) and the International Association of Athletics Federations (from 2001 to 2019, both abbreviated as the IAAF) is the international governing body for the sport of athletics, covering track and field, cross- country running, road running, race walking, mountain running, and ultra running. Included in its charge are the standardization of rules and regulations for the sports, certification of athletic facilities, recognition and management of world records, and the organisation and sanctioning of athletics competitions, including the World Athletics Championships. The organization’s President is Sebastian Coe of the United Kingdom, who was elected in 2015 and re-elected unopposed in 2019 for a further four years.

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The Chinese Athletic Association (CAA) is the national governing body for the sport of athletics in the People’s Republic of China. It became a member of the International Association of Athletics Federations in 1978 and is also a member of the Asian Athletics Association.

‘World Athletics’ further stated that Nanjing was originally selected to host the 2020 World Athletics Indoor Championships, which were first postponed until March 2021, and then to March 2023, as the pandemic continued.

The next edition of the World Athletics Indoor Championships will now be held in Glasgow (UK) from March 1^st-3^rd, 2024, and the bid process has already commenced for the 2026 edition of the championships, which is why 2025 has been designated as the year for the Nanjing championships.

Lamented World Athletics President Sebastian Coe, “We’re disappointed that we have had to postpone this event again due to circumstances beyond our control, but we have done so to give certainty to athletes and Member Federations preparing for the 2023 competition season, Unfortunately, the timeframe will prevent us from relocating the 2023 event, but the indoor championships will return in 2024 to Glasgow.”

Added Coe, “We have offered Nanjing the 2025 edition because we are mindful of the substantial preparations the Local Organising Committee (LOC) has already done to host the event and we want to avoid potential financial losses for all parties. I want to thank CAA and the LOC for their cooperation in resolving this situation.”

Despite this postponement, athletes will still have substantial competitive opportunities available in the early part of 2023 through the World Athletics Indoor Tour, which will offer a full calendar of events from late January to March (more events to be added) and is organised across four different tiers of competition – Gold, Silver, Bronze, and Challenger.

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