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Last week it was announced that the 2020 Tokyo Marathon will be limited to elite athletes only, due to the threat of the coronavirus or what the World Health Organization has labelled as COVID-19.

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Now the Nagoya Women’s Marathon has has done the same.

Invited athletes and runners who have complete the distance in under three hours will be the only competitors in the event that takes place Sunday March 8. The Nagoya City Marathon, which was scheduled to be held on the same day, has been cancelled.

Meanwhile Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike was offended when London mayoral candidate Shaun Bailey claimed the city can host the Olympics.

As for Nagoya, nearly 40,000 runners had been expected to attend the event, which is happening in just two weeks time.

On the Nagoya City Marathon website, organizers wrote, “We at the Nagoya Women’s Marathon have been repeatedly discussing coronavirus with the concerned bodies and examining countermeasures.”

Nearly 100,000 infections have been reported, while 2,200 people have died from COVID-19.

COVID-19 was first detected in Wuhan, China.

Several sporing events have been moved from various cities in China or have been postponed in recent weeks including the latest the Word Championships for the Modern Pentathlon, which have been moved from Xiamen, China to Cancun, Mexico. Also, the World Indoor Athletics Championships were postponed for a year and Olympic qualifiers in football, have been postponed.