The Latest: Kentucky Derby Festival cuts large-scale events

Updated Jun. 11, 2020 11:27 p.m. ET

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The Latest on the effects of the coronavirus outbreak on sports around the world:

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The Kentucky Derby Festival will not hold large-scale events this year, including the highly popular Thunder Over Louisville air and fireworks show that leads off the run-up to the Kentucky Derby.

The Kentucky Oaks for fillies and 146th Derby were postponed from May 1-2 to Sept. 4-5 because of the coronavirus pandemic. It marked the first time since 1945 the Derby was not run on the first Saturday in May. Thunder Over Louisville was rescheduled for August, but Festival organizers announced Thursday night that the air show and events such as the miniMarathon and Pegasus Parade are off.

“As an organization that always puts public health and safety first, we know it would not be responsible for the Kentucky Derby Festival to put on events that attract crowds with not just hundreds, but hundreds of thousands of people,” Matt Gibson, Kentucky Derby Festival President and CEO said in a release.

Organizers are exploring alternatives for smaller-scale events and working to create virtual options for the miniMarathon and Tour de Lou cycling event.

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The PGA Tour Champions Boeing Classic scheduled to be held in August outside of Seattle has been canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tournament director Brian Flajole said Thursday uncertainty about the ability to hold large public gatherings in Washington state led to the decision to not hold the tournament scheduled for Aug. 17-23 at The Club at Snoqualmie Ridge. Flajole said the decision was made in conjunction with local and state health officials as well as the PGA Tour.

Flajole says the tournament intends to return in 2021. This year was set to be the 16th playing of the only professional golf event held annually in the state.

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NHL training camps will open July 10 if the league and players’ union can reach an agreement to resume the season.

Setting this date gives the 17% of players overseas time to make arrangements to return in light of U.S. and Canada quarantine regulations. The league and NHLPA said the July 10 start of camps is pending medical and safety conditions and agreeing on getting back to games.

Camps are expected to run two to three weeks with games taking place in two “hub” cities without fans. If the league and players finalize a deal to return, games could resume in early August.

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Premier League soccer clubs have approved the match protocols for when the competition resumes on Wednesday after a 100-day shutdown because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The procedures cover matchday operations and include splitting stadiums into red, amber and green zones to reduce the risk of spreading the virus.

Restrictions also have been placed on the number of people allowed into stadiums.

The season is scheduled to resume on Wednesday with Aston Villa hosting Sheffield United and Arsenal playing at Manchester City.

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MotoGP says it will resume next month with two races in Spain following a suspension caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

The competition organizers say they have confirmed 13 races. They are all at European locations.

They say four more races in the United States, Argentina, Thailand and Malaysia could be added to the calendar depending on health and travel restrictions. That decision on the additional races will be made before July 31.

The track in Jérez, Spain, will host the first two races on July 19 and 26 before the competition heads to the Czech Republic for the third race.

The season is expected to finish before Dec. 13.

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More AP sports: https://apnews.com/apf-sports and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

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