ITU postpones the 2020 Sarasota-Bradenton ITU World Cup and Paratriathlon World Cup
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Due to the current international travel restrictions recently announced by the U.S. government and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) related to the COVID-19 Coronavirus, the International Triathlon Union (ITU) – in consultation with USA Triathlon, the organizing committee and the local authorities of Florida – has made the decision to postpone the 2020 ITU Sarasota-Bradenton ITU Triathlon World Cup and the Sarasota-Bradenton ITU Paratriathlon World Cup, originally scheduled to take place on March 22.
This decision was made following close communication by USA Triathlon, the ITU and SANCA (Suncoast Aquatic Nature Center Associates, Inc., the local organizing committee) with the Florida Department of Health, as many athletes on the start list are impacted by the travel restrictions.
Moving forward, ITU will work with USA Triathlon and local organizers to explore a suitable date later in the season to potentially host both events safely and in a fair way for all athletes.
Cancellation of PATCO events this weekend
Separately, in addition to this ITU World Cup announcement, the PATCO Paratriathlon Panamerican Championships, Sprint Triathlon Panamerican Cup and Junior North American Championships set for March 14, which had been announced previously to stay on as planned, have just been cancelled. The ITU, in consultation with USA Triathlon, the local organising committee and the authorities in Florida, announced on Thursday night that they have been forced to cancel the Sarasota-Bradenton PATCO events due to the rapidly evolving situation surrounding coronavirus (COVID-19).
The cancellation was made after Sarasota County issued a decision to ban all events with anticipated attendance of 250 or more individuals in order to mitigate risk and protect the county’s most vulnerable populations.
The safety of all athletes, event staff, officials and the community at large remains the highest priority for ITU, PATCO, USA Triathlon and SANCA.
PATCO and ITU want to express their full support to the local organisers, USA Triathlon, teams and volunteers. We are working to try to find a suitable date during the season for the postponed Sarasota-Bradenton ITU Triathlon and ITU Paratriathlon World Cup events, and we will communicate any further changes on this situation to all stakeholders as soon as possible.