The third ALVEO Ironman 70.3 Davao will be postponed due to the outbreak of the 2019 novel coronavirus – acute respiratory disease (2019 nCoV-ARD) in the country.
“This is to ensure the athletes’ safety,” the ALVEO Ironman 70.3 Davao said in its Facebook message posted yesterday to announce the postponement of the triathlon.
Originally set on March 22, the Ironman triathlon has been moved to May 10.
Mayor Sara Duterte and the organizers agreed to move the sports event with the recent Department of Health (DOH) advisory.
The organizer said the “athletes’ safety (is our) primary concern.”
“As has been publicized, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a public health emergency of international concerns as it relates to the coronavirus outbreak.”
ALVEO said athletes who were registered will be sent an email for further details.
“We recognize the disappointment this may cause, but greatly appreciate our athletes’ understanding with this challenging and evolving situation,” ALVEO added.
But City Tourism Officer Generose Tecson said the postponement could be a blessing in disguise.
Tecson said the event was moved to May 2, already a summer season.
In a PTV News interview, she said the participants will likely be tagging their family as cheerers and that they will spend their summer break in the city.
This came a day after Mayor Duterte announced the cancellation of this year’s celebration of Araw ng Davao.
The city scrapped all the major events except the Thanksgiving Mass on March 1.
But the holidays already set on March 1 and March 16 will remain in effect.
Duterte cited the DOH advisory in abandoning the grand celebration of Araw ng Davao 2020, even if there is no 2019 nCoV case in the city.
The nCoV has killed 909 people in China with 40,554 confirmed cases mostly also in China and in 24 other countries, according to WHO’s nCoV Situation Report 21 as of February 10. One Chinese in the Philippine died from the virus.
