Government bans sports activities until Dec 15

Government bans sports activities until Dec 15

The Cambodian Government has imposed another temporary ban on sports activities in light of the worsening COVID-19 situation.

The sports ban was among the preventive measures put in place shortly after Cambodia reported its first community outbreak of the dreaded disease this week.

The number of COVID-19 cases in the Kingdom jumped by 14 in just a few days. There are now 326 confirmed cases in Cambodia, according to the Ministry of Health.

In response, the Government ordered the temporary closures of schools, cinemas and other entertainment venues. A temporary ban on weddings and other gatherings involving more than 20 people was later announced by Prime Minister Hun Sen.

The latest bans took effect on November 30 and will end on December 15. Coverage is limited to Siem Reap province and Phnom Penh.

Various sports federations and organisations, including the Football Federation of Cambodia (FFC), halted their ongoing sports activities in light of the latest sports ban.

The FFC announced yesterday the temporary suspension of the Women’s League, Cambodian League 2, Tiger Futsal Cup 2020 and U-15/U-18 Championship. The same activities were also affected by another ban imposed last month.

The FFC announcement came after organisers of the Angkor Wat International Half Marathon said that Cambodia’s biggest and most anticipated race will not push through as scheduled this weekend because of the coronavirus problem.

Likewise, the Cambodia Basketball Federation (CBF) was forced to suspend for now the Cambodian Basketball League (CBL). The CBL semi-finals was supposed to start this weekend.

But due to the latest developments, it will be moved to another date, according to Austin Koledoye, secretary-general of CBF.

“We cannot compromise the safety of the players and officials. We shall continue to abide with the directives from the Ministry of Health. The semi-finals will resume once we are allowed back into the gym,” he said.

The Phnom Penh Hockey Club and Phnom Penh Social Rugby Club (PPSRC) are among the local sports groups that suspended their activities in light of the latest ban.

“After Hun Sen’s announcement, it does not seem possible to continue with training for the next two weeks,” the PPSRC said.

The PPSRC also announced the postponement of friendly matches between them and Saigon Rugby Club of Vietnam and Wanderers Rugby Football Club of Singapore.

The fate of the National Boxing Championship 2020 is still uncertain. It was originally scheduled to be staged from Nov 16 to 20, before the Cambodia Boxing Federation (CBF) rescheduled it for later this week. The CBF has yet to announce updates about the tournament.

The Cambodian Government first imposed a nationwide sports ban in April, before lifting it two months later. The second ban, which only covered Phnom Penh and Kandal province, was implemented over a two-week period from Nov 8 to 22 in response to the November 3 Incident. Khmer Times