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Updated November 28th, 2021 at 13:12 IST

A glance into how Omicron coronavirus variant is affecting Indian athletes in South Africa

Olympic gold medalist Neeraj Chopra's training camp is highly unlikely to happen, the Junior Women's Hockey World Cup has been postponed amid Omicron concerns.

Reported by: Prithvi Virmani
Omicron
Image: AP/T20worldcup.com/ICC/Pixabay | Image:self
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On Friday, the World Health Organisation (WHO) classified a new variant of COVID-19 which is said to have more than 50 mutations and dubbed it 'Omicron'. It was first identified in South Africa and according to WHO's presser, the cases linked with this variant are n the rise in nearly all provinces of South Africa leading to a spike in cases over the last two weeks. With the discovery of the new COVID variant, a lot of Indian athletes who were scheduled to compete in events in South Africa have come under a cloud of doubt. India's Olympic gold medalist Neeraj Chopra's training camp is highly unlikely to happen, the Junior Women's Hockey World Cup has been postponed, and even the India cricket team's upcoming tour of South Africa is in jeopardy.

The International Hockey Federation (FIH), on Friday, announced that the upcoming Junior Women's Hockey World Cup which was scheduled to be played in Potchefstroom from December 5 to 16 has been put on hold amid the rising concern over the new COVID-19 variant, Omicron, especially in South Africa. FIH CEO Thierry Weil said in a statement: "The safety of everyone involved in the FIH events is an absolute priority. Additionally, many countries, including some of the participating teams, have now strongly increased their travel restrictions with South Africa, including halting flights. Therefore, it simply isn't possible to maintain this event as planned."

Neeraj Chopra to not train in South Africa

Several athletes train in South Africa during the winters and Olympic Champions Neeraj Chopra had also scheduled to train there but according to several reports, the same is being reconsidered. Back in 2019, Chopra had trained in South Africa as he attempted to make his return after elbow surgery. At the end of that stint, he competed at a meet in Potchefstroom, from where he eventually qualified for the Olympics.

About 60 wrestlers are expected to participate in the Commonwealth Wrestling Championships that were to be held in Pretoria between November 30 and December 7, but that too has come under speculation. 

The Indian cricket team's upcoming tour of South Africa is also being reconsidered, but India A against South Africa A will carry on for now as BCCI will wait on Cricket South Africa to take a call on it later on.

Image: AP/T20worldcup.com/ICC/Pixabay

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Published November 28th, 2021 at 13:12 IST

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