Coronavirus Outbreak: Berlin Marathon will not go ahead as planned in September due to pandemic

The Berlin Marathon will not go ahead as planned in September after Germany banned public gatherings of over 5,000 people until 24 October due to the COVID-19 pandemic, organisers have said. [caption id=“attachment_7422031” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Kenenisa Bekele won the Berlin Marathon in 2019. AP[/caption] They did not specify if the event, at which the last seven men’s world records have been set, would be postponed or cancelled altogether. “We have learned from the press conference of the Berlin Senate on 21 April, that according to the Containment Ordinance, all events with more than 5,000 persons will be prohibited until 24 October,” organisers said in a statement. “This applies to many of our events, but especially to the Berlin Marathon, which cannot take place on 26 and 27 September as planned. “We will now deal with the consequences of the official prohibition of our events, coordinate the further steps and inform you as soon as we can.” The London Marathon, which was scheduled to be held on Sunday, has been postponed to 4 October due to the virus, which has infected 2.5 million people globally causing over 172,900 deaths. **Click here to follow LIVE updates on coronavirus outbreak**