Sports bodies to meet UK government about COVID-19 Sports governing bodies and broadcasters in the UK will attend a government meeting on Monday to discuss how to deal with the impact the coronavirus outbreak could have on the sporting calendar, the PA news agency understands The meeting is part of the government’s long-term contingency planning and will cover various possibilities, such as holding events behind closed doors, should the virus continue to spread and gatherings of large numbers of people are banned. It will be hosted by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with head of public affairs Ross Hamilton representing the British Horseracing Authority. A BHA spokesman on Friday evening reiterated the sport continued to operate on the basis of Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s “business as usual” statement, while at the same time its COVID 19 group continues to plan for a range of scenarios across all phases of the government response. Betfair’s market on whether the Cheltenham Festival will start as planned on Tuesday saw ‘yes’ trading at 1-10 on Friday night, with ‘no’ priced at 8-1. Some £3.4 million has been matched.
