Ethiopian athletics legend Haile Gebrselassie has donated nearly $50,000 to a committee set up to fight the spread of coronavirus in his homeland. The Covid-19 National Resource Mobilisation Committee was launched by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on Wednesday in Ethiopia, where there are currently 21 reported cases. “It’s not time to profit but to save lives,” said Haile. “We need to support the government at this crucial time and support one another.”
UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin says the current football season could be lost if it cannot be restarted by the end of June. Most leagues in Europe are suspended because of the coronavirus pandemic, with this summer’s Euro 2020 tournament postponed for another year. Ceferin says seasons could be finished behind closed doors.
Boxer Anthony Yarde says his father has died after contracting coronavirus. The 28-year-old light-heavyweight has urged people to stay at home, saying his father had been “fit with no health issues” before becoming ill. “I’m still in shock but maybe this can help people stay at home,” Yarde posted on social media.
Tottenham defender Toby Alderweireld is trying “to bring a little bit of joy” to those with coronavirus by donating tablets to hospitals and nursing homes. The Belgium international has already paid for dozens of devices and has more on the way for those who are isolated.
The world championship could extend into January next year as Formula 1 seeks to salvage the 2020 season, says Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto. The first eight races have been called off and the British Grand Prix in July is one of the next events under threat. Binotto said teams are in “constant dialogue” with F1 on how to proceed. “We’re assessing various ideas – races closer together, maybe doing two or three races in January, cancelling (Friday) practice,” he said.
It would only be “fair” to award Liverpool the Premier League title if the season is not completed because of coronavirus, says Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan. With football in England suspended until at least 30 April, Liverpool have a 25-point lead over defending champions City and are two wins from a first top-flight title in 30 years.
Football is suspended across most of world because of the coronavirus pandemic – but the game rolls on in Belarus. The Belarusian Premier League rarely gets a mention in normal circumstances yet it is attracting attention from foreign fans as one of the few places around the globe – and the only place in Europe – where football is still being played.
Turkey’s most capped player, former goalkeeper Rustu Recber, is in a “critical period” in hospital with coronavirus. The ex-Barcelona and Fenerbahce keeper, 46, won 120 caps and was one of the players of the tournament when Turkey reached the 2002 World Cup semi-finals.
Juventus’ players and manager Maurizio Sarri have agreed to their pay being stopped for four months to save the club an estimated 90m euros during the coronavirus pandemic. All sport in Italy has been suspended until at least 3 April.
Former Premier League star Nolberto Solano has apologised after being detained by police for breaking a coronavirus curfew in Peru. The South American nation has imposed a mandatory curfew between 8pm and 5am every day to combat the spread of the virus.
The Spanish Grand Prix has become the fifth race of the MotoGP season to be postponed because of coronavirus. The race in Jerez was intended to be the start of the MotoGP season following the cancellation of the original season opener in Qatar.
Chelsea winger Callum Hudson-Odoi is “fully recovered” from coronavirus, says Blues manager Frank Lampard. The England international, 19, became the first Premier League player to test positive for Covid-19 earlier this month.
Ajax’s Abdelhak Nouri, who suffered brain damage after an on-pitch heart attack in 2017, is out of hospital and communicating with his family at home, his brother has told Dutch television. The midfielder, 22, was placed in an induced coma after the incident in a pre-season game in Austria in 2017. “He sleeps, eats, sneezes and burps but is very dependent,” his brother Abderrahim told De Wereld Draait Door.
Manchester United loanee Odion Ighalo has been offered a two-year contract extension worth more than £400,000 per week by his parent club Shanghai Shenhua. The Chinese club want to reward the Nigerian striker for his good form at United, where has scored four goals in his first three starts. The 30-year-old’s loan in England expires on May 31 but it is likely to be extended until June 30 because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Former Olympic and world 100m champion Justin Gatlin says he can win gold at the Tokyo Olympics despite him likely being 39 when the postponed Games take place. The Olympics, due to begin in July, were postponed this week because of the coronavirus pandemic. American Gatlin, 38, won gold at Athens 2004 and the world title in London in 2017 after a second doping ban.
The 22nd edition of the Africa Senior Athletics championships has been postponed to 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic. Some of Africa’s best track and field athletes were scheduled to converge in Algiers, Algeria, between 24 and 28 June this year for the championships. But a statement shared by the host Algeria Athletics Federation (FAA) on their website stated, “Following the magnitude of the pandemic and the containment and awareness measures decided by the public authorities, the two sports authorities decided to postpone these championships to the summer of 2021.”
Olympic swimming champion Chad le Clos has urged fellow South Africans to “stay at home” and “stay active” in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. Le Clos, 27, who won 200m butterfly gold at London 2012, says he is “in the shape of his life” and believed he was on target to add to his tally of four Olympic medals overall at the Tokyo Games, which have been postponed to 2021.
The gambling sector in East Africa is in a “total mess” following the collapse of global sport in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, a Ugandan betting company has said. Betting markets have dramatically shrunk in light of the suspension of the world’s leading football leagues, which has left little for people to gamble on. But in east Africa, the market has been particularly hard-hit because few in the region bet online.
The four Bundesliga clubs in this season’s Champions League have pledged 20m euros to support fellow German teams during the coronavirus. Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig and Bayer Leverkusen will forego their share of the national media revenue and donate the remainder from their own funds. The German Football League (DFL) will decide how the money will be distributed.
Two Nigerian footballers – one a Super Eagles international – have been released after being kidnapped on Sunday. Enyimba FC, for whom midfielder Ekundayo Ojo plays, said that both he and Abia Comet’s Benjamin Iluyomade had “regained their freedom.”
