Midnight Marathon in Hanoi postponed over coronavirus epidemic

By Pham Van   February 3, 2020 | 08:00 pm PT
Safety considerations over the ongoing coronavirus epidemic have prompted organizers to postpone the first ever midnight marathon from March 7 to August 22.
VnEpxress Hanoi Midnight Marathon is the first night run event in Vietnam. Photo: Ngoc Thanh.

VnEpxress Hanoi Midnight Marathon is the first night run event in Vietnam. Photo by VnExpress/Ngoc Thanh.

VnExpress and the Hanoi People's Committee have decided to postpone the VnExpress Hanoi Midnight Marathon. The decision was due to force majeure circumstance as the government declared the novel coronavirus (nCoV) outbreak an epidemic, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism ordered a stop to all festivals and the Hanoi People's Committee issued directions on epidemic control. 

The race, originally scheduled for the night of March 7 - early morning of March 8, has been postponed to the night of August 22 - early morning of August 23. BIB tickets bought by contestants will remain valid on the new date.

Accordingly, the time to purchase Regular Tickets has been extended until June 22, and that for the Late Tickets will be open on June 22, ending on July 22.

For those who have already purchased the Late BIB tickets, the difference in prices between the Regular and Late tickets will be refunded. 

Those who have successfully registered for the run before February 4 will receive a 20 percent discount code for one of VnExpress Marathon events, valid until March 31, 2021. Details will be mailed to those who have registered. 

So far Vietnam has confirmed nine infections and 304 suspected cases with symptoms like high fever and cough, including some who had visited infected areas in China.

Many sporting events worldwide have also been postponed and/or canceled, such as the Hong Kong Marathon, which was slated to be held this month with 70,000 athletes. The national football championship in China (Super League 2020) has also been delayed indefinitely.

In Vietnam alone, The Vietnam National Championship 2020, planned to take place on February 21, will be delayed until February 29 or March 7 depending on the situation; the National Cup will be delayed to February 23 or April 3 instead of February 9. The V-League 2020, scheduled for March 14, has also been postponed to an unspecified date.

The nCoV has spread to 25 countries and territories so far. As of Tuesday, it has killed 426 people, 425 in China and one in the Philippines, and infected more than 20,600 people.

 
 
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