The Latest on the effects of the coronavirus outbreak on sports around the world:
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As Darlington Raceway prepares for its first of two NASCAR visits this season, track officials announced Friday they plan to fully open the grandstands for the Southern 500 on Labor Day weekend.
The raceway will hold the Goodyear 400 on Sunday to limited spectators. Darlington President Kerry Tharp said that will change this summer when the series returns when there will be no limits on fans. Darlington Raceway has a seating capacity of about 47,000.
Tharp thanked South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster is helping the facility re-open fully for the first time since the coronavirus pandemic hit in the spring of 2020. This is the first time since 2004 the track has had two scheduled races for the NASCAR Cup Series.
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Canada will not send a gymnastics team to a last-chance Tokyo Olympic qualifier because of COVID-19 concerns.
The 2021 Senior Pan American Championships are in Rio de Janeiro from June 4-13. Canada’s would have been trying to qualify in men’s artistic, women’s artistic and rhythmic gymnastics.
Canada had the opportunity to qualify one more gymnast in men’s and women’s artistic and one individual and one group in rhythmic gymnastics at the competition.
The event also is a qualifier for trampoline, but there will be another qualification event in that discipline in Italy.
Gymnastics Canada also said Friday the risk was “too high” to send a team to the 2021 Junior Pan American Championships in Guadalajara, Mexico.
“In this pandemic environment, an additional layer of concern is required when travelling internationally to competitions,” Ian Moss, CEO of the governing body, said in a statement.
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