The latest cancellation due to the coronavirus pandemic is the 2020 World Championship.
Saturday morning, the International Ice Hockey Federation announced that they would be shuttering this year’s tournament. It’s the first time the World Championship will not be played in 32 years. That year the tournament was not held due to the 1988 Winter Olympics.
The 2020 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship has been cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic, it has been confirmed today by the IIHF Council. Story: https://t.co/N3rr4RucLT pic.twitter.com/uBQ9Uf8PVL
— IIHF (@IIHFHockey) March 21, 2020
“This is a harsh reality to face for the international ice hockey family, but one that we must accept,” IIHF President René Fasel said in a release. “The coronavirus is a global problem and requires major efforts by government bodies to combat its spread. The IIHF must do all it can to support this fight. We have to set sport aside for now and support both the government bodies and the ice hockey family.”
The tournament this year was slated to be held in Zürich and Lausanne, Switzerland. According to Johns Hopkins, Swizterland has 6,284 confirmed cases of coronavirus and 72 deaths as of March 21.
Alex Ovechkin has won the World Championship three times during his future Hall of Fame career.
