BWF postpones Asian leg of World Tour to Jan 2021
Sep 25, 2020
Kuala Lumpur [Malaysia], September 25 : Badminton World Federation (BWF) on Friday postponed the Asian leg of the adjusted BWF World Tour 2020 to January 2021.
The three tournaments - Asia Open-I Super 1000, Asia Open-II Super 1000 and the BWF World Tour Finals - will now be held in Bangkok next year.
"It will feature two Super 1000 tournaments, culminating with the BWF World Tour Finals. The decision was announced at a BWF Council meeting on Thursday evening. This means the 2020 season will now finish in January 2021," BWF said.
BWF and Badminton Association of Thailand, in collaboration with the Government of Thailand, completed a feasibility study to ensure all parties can provide a safe COVID-19 framework to stage the three tournaments.
The study concluded Thailand to be the agreed host of the three-tournament Asian leg. BWF greatly appreciates the cooperation of the Badminton Association of Thailand and the support and contribution of the Government of Thailand in committing to this important step as part of the restart of international badminton tournaments.
It was agreed by the BWF Council that staging the Asian leg in November as originally planned was no longer a viable option in being able to guarantee the highest standard of tournament including securing all logistical arrangements for players and participants.
"The three Asian leg tournaments now sit alongside the Denmark Open 2020 (October 13-18) in forming the conclusion to the new-look World Tour 2020 calendar," BWF said.