The Hellenic Olympic Committee announced on Friday that the Olympic torch relay race in Greece would be canceled due to the outbreak of the coronavirus disease
ATHENS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 13th March, 2020) The Hellenic Olympic Committee announced on Friday that the Olympic torch relay race in Greece would be canceled due to the outbreak of the coronavirus disease.
"The Hellenic Olympic Committee has made a difficult but necessary decision to cancel the further torch relay procedure on the Greek soil, following unexpectedly big crowds of people at the torch relay ceremony in Sparta despite repeated recommendations for people not to gather at ceremonies," the committee said in a statement.
The Hellenic Olympic Committee added that the decision had been made following consultations with the Health Ministry and the International Olympic Committee.
"The Olympic torch will be passed on to the Tokyo 2020 Organizing Committee on Thursday, March 19, at the Panathenaic Stadium, with no spectators," the Hellenic Olympic Committee went on to say.
It was initially planned that the Olympic torch would travel 3,200 kilometers (1,988 miles) across Greece, visiting dozens of cities and two islands.
