British sports hold day of mourning for Queen Elizabeth II

Agencies | London

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

British sports were holding a day of mourning for Queen Elizabeth II, with high-profile golf, cricket and horse racing events cancelled Friday as a mark of respect and the Premier League meeting to discuss whether to call off games scheduled for the weekend.

The BMW PGA Championship, the flagship event on the European tour, was paused near the end of the first round Thursday following the announcement of the queen’s death — there were still 30 players out on the course — and there will be no play Friday.

The England and Wales Cricket Board has already announced that there would be no play on Friday in the third and deciding test between England and South Africa at the Oval. There was no update on whether the play would be resuming over the weekend.

Other events called off included the third day of horse racing’s St. Leger festival in Doncaster —horse racing was the queen’s favourite — and cycling’s Tour of Britain, which also cancelled the final two stages of the race scheduled for the weekend.

Soccer matches in the English Football League — the three leagues below the Premier League — and in the Scottish lower league will not be played Friday and matches scheduled to be played in Northern Ireland over the weekend were also cancelled.

The Premier League had not yet decided its position, with a meeting being held between the clubs on Friday morning. Factors involved in any decision were likely to include whether holding matches would use up police resources, the desire of broadcasters and the mood of the public.

There is little room in the schedule of this World Cup-affected season to fit in postponed fixtures.