WC update on SARS

From Star Online, today

The Star Online > Sports
Wednesday, April 30, 2003
Questions over shuttlers and bowlers, SEABA meet put off

LONDON: The World Badminton Championships could be the next major sports event to fall prey to the SARS epidemic, even as Malaysia were considering their participation in that event and had pulled out of the Southeast Asian Basketball Association (SEABA) Championship Manila next week.

London's Daily Telegraph said it was 90% certain the world championship due to be staged in Birmingham, England from May 12-19 would be postponed, although organisers were looking at ways of holding it.

“A week ago I thought it was 50-50 whether they would go ahead, but it's now a lot worse than that,” a well-placed source told the Telegraph.

“We need to start planning for a postponement now because the players will start travelling by the weekend,” the source added.

The Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM), meanwhile, will meet today to decide on the participation of the players in the World Championships in Birmingham next month.

But with the International Badminton Federation (IBF) yet to give a clear confirmation on the world meet continuing as scheduled next month, BAM are likely to buy time and put off any major decisions until the last minute.

IBF itself is in a dilemma over whether to call off the meet. Yesterday, IBF communications director Lindsey Bell said no final decision has been made yet and they are going ahead with preparations for the World Championships.

“We are well aware of the gravity of the current SARS situation but we have put in place the necessary precautions and measures. Given the circumstances, we are continuing with the preparations for the meet.”

The BA of England are confident the championships can be held by introducing measures such as stopping players from shaking hands at the end of matches, and the UK Department of Health have stepped in, saying there was no reason to call it off but IBF president Korn Dabbaransi believes it should be postponed.

New BAM secretary Gangga Rao, meanwhile, said the decision on whether or not to go would be left to president Datuk Mohd Nadzmi Salleh although the opinions of the players would first be sought.

Gangga did not discount the possibility that BAM may pull out the players from the world championships in the event the SARS situation worsens.

 

Some background information

Nice find there, Matt.

Like MOST other countries (except Taiwan), travelling restrictions are not in place. In Taiwan, if you have travelled form a SARS affected area, you have to spend 10 days in quarantine!!

Here's some background information that I think is relevant.

The IBF president is Thai.

In Thailand, if I go there from HK, I have to spend 2 weeks wearing a mask by law. If I do not comply, it's a 6 month period in prison!!! Hence, I suspect the IBF president may have been drawing on his own country's stand on the matter.

The WHO has actually met in Thailand with other SE Asian leaders and said that the pneumonia is being controlled apart from China. I seem to remember reading that the travel advisory alert will remain in place until no new cases for 20 days. That's actually pretty tough...but the measures that are taken to control the spread are already in place 5 weeks before the WHO lifts the alert.

Another thing to note is that some people get very paranoid and demand NO RISK. Now that is a very unhelpful stand because just living entails all sorts of different risks. Travelling on the plane has a risk, crossing the road has risks. It's impossible to demand NO RISK. You might get meningitis anywhere in the world <shrug shoulders> If anybody demands no risk, or the most minimum amount of risk, I suggest they give up work, shut themselves up in a house and live by themselves in isolation.....