Matches without supporters not on Turkey's agenda

By Emre Asikci

ANKARA (AA) - Postponing league games or playing matches without fans due to coronavirus fears is not on Turkey's agenda, said Turkey's Youth and Sports Minister Mehmet Kasapoglu on Wednesday.

The games will continue as planned, Kasapoglu added.

He stressed that international events in especially youth camps were put off due to coronavirus fears. "More than 80 national and international [sports] events [around the world] with no quota requirements in March and April were also postponed," Kasapoglu added.

Meanwhile, Turkey early Wednesday confirmed the first case of coronavirus in the country.

Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said at a press conference in the capital Ankara that a male citizen tested positive for the virus.

The novel coronavirus known as COVID-19 was first detected last December in Wuhan, China.

The global death toll from the coronavirus is now almost 4,300, with more than 118,100 confirmed cases, according to the World Health Organization.

The virus has since spread to six continents and more than 100 countries.