Taiwan will likely take part in Hong Kong's annual Rugby Sevens tournament despite the threat of war in Iraq and a pneumonia outbreak, a Chinese Taipei Rugby official said yesterday.
The spokeswoman said Taiwan had not considered withdrawing from the event later this month, though the New Zealand rugby union said it is considering pulling out.
"We have not thought about this question yet and did not know about New Zealand.
"But if the situation gets worse then we will have to think again," the spokeswoman said.
She said the country's rugby team was not scheduled to travel to Hong Kong until next Wednesday and there was a window for the decision to be made before then.
The annual Rugby Sevens tournament, from March 28 to March 30, draws around 40,000 rugby fans from around the world.
It was reported yesterday that New Zealand's sevens rugby and field hockey teams may not take part in upcoming events in Asia because of the threat of war in Iraq and a pneumonia outbreak.
The coach of the New Zealand rugby team told the South China Morning Post the outbreak was a "real concern" and the team would decide later this week whether to cancel.
The WHO issued a global alert about the outbreak which has killed nine people and infected more than 170 worldwide. More than 90 people were yesterday in hospital in Hong Kong.
The fast-spreading pneumonia, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), has the potential to cause the postponement of the Rugby Sevens and was being closely monitored by the New Zealand Rugby Football Union (NZRU).
The New Zealand men's hockey team was to leave yesterday for the nine-day Sultan Aslan Shah tournament in Ipoh, Malaysia, starting on Saturday and they were also wary of the threat posed by the mystery illness.
NZRU acting deputy chief executive Steve Tew said the illness was a cause for concern and the union was considering sending an extra doctor to Hong Kong.
"We'll be talking to the Ministry of Health and International Rugby Board people in Asia.
"We want to make sure that the risk is manageable or we will
reconsider [sending a team]."
The NZRU received confirmation from the Hong Kong Rugby Union yesterday morning that the tournament was going ahead.
Tew said the NZRU was well prepared for the advent of war.
"We are taking a very cautious approach. We have any number of players and people traveling around the world at any given time.
New Zealand Hockey chief executive Ramesh Patel said it was unclear exactly what precautions should be taken against the illness but their medical team was monitoring the issue.
The threat of war in Iraq has already impacted on New Zealand football, with the All Whites home and away matches against Iran postponed.
Despite the pneumonia outbreak the Rolling Stones will still visit Hong Kong, news reports said yesterday.
Aging rock band the Rolling Stones play Hong Kong the same weekend as the Hong Kong Rugby Sevens tournament starts next weekend.
They are not expected to cancel their shows, promoter Colleen Ironside was reported as saying by the Post. "They recognize it is highly improbable the band or crew will be visiting the kind of areas where contamination is a risk," promoter Colleen Ironside was reported as saying.
ANFIELD BLUES: Kylian Mbappe arrived at Anfield on a run of 21 goals in 17 games, but he managed just three attempts in the match, none of them hitting the target Kylian Mbappe has been nearly unstoppable this season, but he hit a roadblock in their UEFA Champions League match at Anfield on Tuesday. For the second year running, the Real Madrid forward had a night to forget at Merseyside as Liverpool won 1-0. Mbappe looked a shadow of the player who has been tearing defenses apart all season. “We were lacking that threat in the final third,” said Madrid coach Xabi Alonso, without naming Mbappe individually. The FIFA World Cup winner for France rarely looked capable of finding a breakthrough against a Liverpool team who have been so defensively fragile for much of the
LOCAL SUCCESS: In the doubles, Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia defeated Italians Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini in straight sets Elena Rybakina on Monday punched her ticket to the WTA Finals last four with an impressive 3-6, 6-1, 6-0 victory over second seed Iga Swiatek in round-robin play in Riyadh. After cruising past Amanda Anisimova in her opener on Saturday, Rybakina claimed her second win of the week to guarantee herself top spot in the Serena Williams Group. Anisimova on Monday rallied back from a set and a break down to triumph 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 in her all-American battle with seventh seed Madison Keys, who has been eliminated from the competition. “Madi was playing so well, it was quite a battle out there,”
Jemimah Rodrigues on Thursday hit an unbeaten 127 as India pulled off a record chase of 339 against Australia to set up a Women’s World Cup final against South Africa. Rodrigues and skipper Harmanpreet Kaur, who hit 89, put on 167 runs for the third wicket as India won with nine balls and five wickets to spare at DY Patil Stadium, on the outskirts of Mumbai. The hosts finished on a total of 341-5 in reply to Australia’s impressive 338 and ensured there would be a new name on the 50-over trophy tomorrow. Amanjot Kaur hit the winning boundary to trigger wild celebrations
Jannik Sinner on Thursday eased past Francisco Cerundolo 7-5, 6-1 at the Paris Masters to set up a quarter-final clash with Ben Shelton, while reigning champion Alexander Zverev earned a straight-sets win over Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the third round. A maiden crown in the French capital would return Sinner to No. 1 in the world rankings after current incumbent Carlos Alcaraz suffered a shock early exit at the hands of Britain’s Cameron Norrie. The Italian four-time Grand Slam champion is yet to drop a set in the tournament as he hones in on what would be a fifth title of the
RSS