In this photo an employee works at Cipla, one of India’s largest drug makers, in Mumbai. (The New York Times)

In light of the outbreak of the Coronavirus in several countries in the world, including some reported cases in India, the Government of India has advised all National Sports Federations (NSF’s) to exercise caution while planning foreign competitions and training for the teams and individual athletes in the light of the importance of some of these competitions which contribute to Olympic qualification.

The Coronavirus outbreak has had consequences and repercussions across the globe. 2020 is a very important year in the world of sports with the Olympics set to take place in Tokyo, Japan in July and August.

However,  a copy of the advisory has been sent to all the NSFs.

“While the government understands the criticality of ranking tournaments and Olympic qualifiers, you would understand that the health of our athletes takes precedence.”

“Therefore we would like to request the NSFs to adhere by the World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines,” read the statement.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) had issued its own health advisory on the Coronavirus on 19th February.