DUBAI: The National Olympic Committee (NOC) has received an official letter from the General Secretariat of GCC regarding the postponement of the 3rd GCC Games in Kuwait, which were scheduled to be held from April 4 to 14, 2020. The Games will be held in December in a date to be decided later on, according to a press release.

The NOC is fully supportive of all decisions aimed to safeguard the health of athletes and the community at large through rescheduling local sports events in collaboration with the hosting countries. This stand stems from the NOC’s keenness to promote health education and curb the spread of illnesses among participants.

“The NOC supports the efforts of all sports and public entities to halt the spread of the current coronavirus. We prioritize the health of athletes and sports personnel in response to the directives of Sheikh Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Maktoum, President of the NOC, to place health issues above all considerations. It is also in line with the vision of our leadership that cares for humans and healthy communities,” said Mohammed bin Sulayem, Secretary-General, UAE NOC.

“The NOC is always keen on taking preventive and cautionary measures at all levels. It has been decided upfront to postpone the 5th National Sports Day following the recommendation of the Executive Team of the initiative headed by Sheikh Eng. Salim bin Sultan Al Qasimi. It was decided to postpone sports event; which brings together various nationalities to practice a variety of events at different locations for 24 hours to raise the public awareness and stress the importance of taking preventive measures and handling various issues.