Media Release 18 March 2020
Over 300 Australian Bridge Clubs close for Coronavirus
The Australian Bridge Federation has recommended to its 350 affiliated clubs around Australia with over 37,000 members that they close for at least four weeks when the situation with the coronavirus will be reviewed.
The secretary of the ABF, Kim Frazer, who has represented Australia in both Bridge internationally and Shooting at the Commonwealth and Olympic Games circulated this statement on behalf of the ABF Management Committee.
“Whilst it may be a difficult decision, health experts around the world are all in agreement that the best way to slow the transmission of the virus is for people to practice social distancing. Many other organisations are cancelling events that involve gatherings of people and we feel it is a duty of care to our extremely high-risk clientele and to afford the highest level of health and safety to the members, their families and the wider community.”
The President of The Australian Bridge Federation, Allison Stralow, who is currently in one of the hot spots for the coronavirus, Seattle in the USA, said
“I am very disappointed for our tens of thousands of enthusiastic bridge players who will greatly miss both the competition, mental stimulation, friendships and social activity that contributes so much joy in their lives”.
Several major bridge congresses including in April the Asia Pacific Bridge Championships in Perth have had to be postponed or cancelled. With teams expected from all over Asia and a world leading team from the USA and Europe this is very unfortunate for the players and the team of organisers.
Bridge is a national sport with clubs from the far north of Queensland to Hobart in the South and from Sydney to Perth and the towns and cities in between.
The ABF and bridge clubs all around Australia raised thousands of dollars for the recent bushfire appeals with bridge clubs on the south coast of NSW and Northern Victorian where fires badly damaged their communities.
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