Sports in Europe adjust to new reality

Golfing boom

Meanwhile, there has been a surge in the number of amateur golfers. In the UK, the number of rounds played last month was up by more than 40 percent compared with the same period last year, according to preliminary figures published by Sports Marketing Surveys.

Golf Magic, a news site dedicated to the sport, said that for many people "golf has been a key social outlet, as well as a way of preserving mental and physical health through the pandemic".

Professional snooker has experienced relative success since returning. Ronnie O'Sullivan from the United Kingdom won his sixth World Snooker Championship title this month, with the final against Kyren Wilson played in front of a reduced crowd of about 300 at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, northern England.

It was one of the first major events held in Europe during the pandemic that fans were allowed to attend, although the vast majority of the tournament was played without an audience. Organizers said the TV viewing figures were high and included huge numbers of fans in China.

Track and field is also returning after experiencing a major blow when the 2020 European Athletics Championship was canceled. Due to be staged in Paris from Tuesday to Sunday, the event was an early casualty of the lockdown imposed in the French capital.

On Aug 15, the Diamond League, the elite track and field competition, returned behind closed doors in Monaco, four months later than originally scheduled.

Swimming has been hit by the pandemic at elite and recreational level, with the 2020 European Aquatics Championships, scheduled for May 11 to May 24 in Budapest, Hungary, postponed to next year. Swimming pools that have reopened across Europe have imposed strict precautionary measures.

Mass-participation events aimed at attracting amateur competitors, such as marathons, triathlons and other outdoor endurance competitions, had to be called off, resulting in lost income from entry fees.

By early March, with the pandemic triggering lockdowns across Europe, organizers of popular marathons in many cities slowly began to accept the harsh reality of the situation and postponed their races.

One of the biggest events, the Paris Marathon, originally due to take place on April 5, was postponed until Oct 18, then to Nov 15, before being canceled. Marathons scheduled for Rome, Barcelona, Madrid and Frankfurt were initially postponed before being called off.

Of the six World Marathon Majors, the events in Berlin, Chicago, New York and Boston were canceled, while the Tokyo marathon was held in March, with only elite athletes competing.

The London Marathon, originally due to be held on April 26, is now scheduled for October, but only with elite athletes. Next year's event in the UK capital has also been moved from April to October. The BBC reported that the loss of amateur participants from the London Marathon is also a huge blow for charities, with last year's event raising more than 66 million pounds ($86 million).

Organizers of the London Marathon announced this month that the elite races for male, female and wheelchair athletes had been rescheduled for an enclosed course in St James's Park on Oct 4, with finishing times counting toward qualification for the postponed Tokyo 2020 Olympic event.