Australian Olympic Committee will not send athletes to Asian Games

The Australian Olympic Committee has advised that it will not be sending any athletes to compete in the 19th Asian Games this September over COVID-19 fears.

With Australia having previously sent athletes to the Asian Games, the AOC has declined to do so for the delayed Games, due to take place from 10th to 25th September in the Chinese city of Hangzhou.

China is continuing to battle ongoing COVID-19 outbreaks focussed on Shanghai over recent weeks - which is less than 200 kilometres from Hangzhou - but more recently in the capital of Beijing.

Shanghai is currently dealing with a large COVID-19 outbreak. Organizers of the Asian Games said they are working on a virus control plan, perhaps similar to Beijing’s “closed loop” system used for the Winter Olympics.

As reported by the Around the Rings website, an AOC spokesperson advised in a statement, “no athletes from Australian sports will take part.”

The upcoming edition will be the third time China has hosted the Asian Games, after Beijing in 1990 and Guangzhou in 2010.

Image: Venues that will host 19th Asian Games events in Hangzhou.