Coronavirus: Here's what happened in the sports world on Monday

The latest on how the coronavirus outbreak is affecting sports around the globe:

• IOC to suspend all Olympic boxing qualifiers
• NHL players allowed to go home, self-isolate
• MLB pushes back opening day until at least mid-May
• Women's pro tennis tour suspends events until May 2
• UFC reportedly suspends next 3 events
• Rugby Super League suspended until April
• A 5th Wolfpack player in self-isolation with possible COVID-19 symptoms
• NFL cancels public events surrounding April draft
• KHL plans to continue playoffs in 1 week
• No Penn Relays for 1st time since 1895
• Beach volleyball events postponed until May 6  
• Indianapolis 500 still scheduled for late May

Second IOC official reveals May deadline for Olympics

French Olympic Committee president Denis Masseglia said on Monday that the coronavirus pandemic needed to be beyond its peak by the end of May for the Tokyo Olympics to go according to schedule.

"My feeling is that if we're still in the crisis by the end of May I can't see how the Games can happen [on time]," Masseglia told Reuters.

Montreal's Dick Pound, a former IOC vice-president, said in an interview with The Associated Press last month that the end of May loomed as a possible deadline for the IOC to make a call on the Tokyo Olympics.

On Sunday, John Coates, the leader of the IOC's co-ordination commission, said there is no May deadline to cancel the Games and he remains confident the event will go ahead, starting July 24.

The IOC will hold talks with heads of international sports organizations on Tuesday in response to the coronavirus outbreak, a source close to an international federation briefed on the issue said.

UFC reportedly on hold

After saying publicly two days earlier that no scheduled fights would be postponed or canceled because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, UFC president Dana White reportedly told staff Monday that the next three events would be moved to later, undetermined dates.

In an internal company email sent Monday, White reportedly revealed that events originally set for London, Columbus, Ohio, and Portland, Ore., would all be indefinitely postponed with the increased difficulty in finding cities that could safely handle large crowds.

"The next three events — London, Columbus, and Portland — will be postponed," White wrote, per the copy of the email obtained by MMA Junkie and ESPN.com. "UFC 249 is still scheduled as planned, but the location may change. We'll keep you posted."

The announcement marks a major change of course for the UFC and White, as he had been vehement in his intentions to avoid any alterations to their calendar. The UFC 249 card planned for Brooklyn, N.Y., is still on for now with a possible location change.

"We did everything we could to relocate our next three events — London, Columbus, and Portland," White wrote. "But every day, there are new restrictions put in place on travel and large public gatherings that are making it impossible to stay on schedule. We can't even hold an event in Vegas, our home town, because there's a ban on all combat sports events in Nevada until at least March 25."

The UFC also reportedly closed its Las Vegas headquarters on Monday.

NASCAR suspends season until May, will reschedule events

NASCAR has suspended its season until May as part of the CDC's recommendation to postpone gatherings for the next eight weeks because of the COVID-19 pandemic

The decision came after at least two Monday conference calls between the sanctioning body and its team owners. It affects seven total races — Atlanta and Homestead had already been postponed.

"The health and safety of our fans, industry and the communities in which we race is our most important priority," NASCAR said.

The series plans to return to the track at Martinsville Speedway in Virginia on May 9.

Softball Canada suspends activities

Softball Canada has announced the suspension of all activities until mid-April.

"Please be advised that due to COVID-19 concerns for the Health and Safety of our participants, Softball Canada is suspending all activities until April 14, 2020.

"This includes national team, coaching, officiating, Canpitch and other scheduled programming/meetings in the period."

The organization says it will make a decision on a further suspension or reinstatement of activities prior to April 14.

European Olympic boxing qualifier among events IOC to suspend

The International Olympic Committee has decided to suspend all Olympic boxing qualifying events until May because of the coronavirus outbreak.

A European qualifier currently taking place in London started on Saturday and was scheduled to run to March 24. It will be closed after Monday's evening session.

Subsequent Americas and final world qualifiers were scheduled to take place in May.

The IOC boxing task force says it has taken the decision to suspend events "amid increasing global travel restrictions and quarantine measures, in order to allow the participants from over 60 countries to adjust their travel plans and return home."

The task force says it is evaluating the situation daily with the aim "to complete the distribution of the remaining Tokyo 2020 boxing quota places in May and June."

NHL, AHL players told they can return home

NHL players have been told they can return home and self-isolate there until the end of March while hockey is on hold amid the coronavirus pandemic.

This signals a significant update on the league's potential timeline to resume the season. League commissioner Gary Bettman announced last week the season was on pause and did not provide more specifics on how long that would last.

Players had previously been told to remain in their team's city and await further direction. The new directive comes in the aftermath of the CDC's recommendation the U.S. not hold gatherings of 50 or more people for the next eight weeks

Meanwhile, a person familiar with the discussions tells The Associated Press that the American Hockey League is allowing its players to return home while determining it won't be able to resume its season until May at the earliest.

The move follows last week's decision by the 31-team AHL to suspend its season until further notice. The decision coincides with the NHL placing a roster freeze on player movement, as well as pushing back the possibility of resuming its season for several weeks, if not more than a month.

Previously, players were encouraged to remain with their teams.

Start to MLB season delayed until at least mid-May

Major League Baseball pushed back opening day until mid-May at the earliest on Monday because of the new coronavirus after the federal government recommended restricting events of more than 50 people for the next eight weeks.

Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred made the announcement following a conference call with executives of the 30 teams.

"The clubs remain committed to playing as many games as possible when the season begins," the commissioner's office said in a statement.

MLB called off the rest of the spring training schedule on Thursday and said opening day, which had been scheduled for March 26, was postponed for at least two weeks. Teams and players agree that two to four weeks of additional spring training will be needed before the regular season begins.

Baseball Hall of Fame induction weekend nixed

The Baseball Hall of Fame has cancelled Hall of Fame Classic weekend because of the spread of the new coronavirus.

The Hall of Fame said advance purchases for the May 22-24 event in Cooperstown, New York, will be refunded.

The Hall of Fame is closed to the public indefinitely.

WTA suspends April tournaments

The women's professional tennis tour has suspended all competition until May 2 because of the coronavirus outbreak.

The WTA says it is calling off clay-court tournaments in Stuttgart, Istanbul and Prague, adding those to a list of events previously cancelled.

Each of those three tournaments was scheduled to begin in April.

The tour says a decision will be made "in the week ahead" about the rest of the European clay-court circuit.

The next Grand Slam tournament is the French Open, which is scheduled to begin in Paris on May 24.

Rugby Super League suspends season

The Super League — Europe's top division in rugby league and includes the Toronto Wolfpack — has been suspended, initially until April.

The league says the decision was taken following the British government's updated advice on limiting social contact and mass gatherings.

In a joint statement, Super League executive chairman Robert Elstone and Rugby Football League chief executive Ralph Rimmer said the suspension presents "significant financial and commercial implications for rugby league, which will be further considered during the period of suspension."

5th Wolfpack player in self-isolation

English rugby league has been suspended until April 3 in the wake of news that a fifth member of the Toronto Wolfpack is in self-isolation after showing possible symptoms of COVID-19.

The decision to suspend play was made at a meeting of club officials, Rugby Football League and Super League in Huddersfield, England, following the latest British government advice regarding social contact and mass gatherings.

On Sunday, the Wolfpack said four of its players had gone into self-isolation after experiencing mild possible COVID-19 symptoms.

Head coach Brian McDermott said the players in question have gone into seven-day isolation. Under the advised British medical protocol, they would get tested for the virus if the symptoms continue after that. The first player to go into self-isolation did so last Thursday.

Toronto, which had the weekend off after a midweek Challenge Cup win, was slated to play Sunday at Wakefield Trinity.

The Wolfpack are currently based in England, with their Toronto home opener slated for April 18.

NFL to hold draft in April without public events

The NFL announced it will proceed with the NFL draft, but has cancelled all public events surrounding the event scheduled for April 23-25 in Las Vegas.

"In consideration of current information related to COVID-19 and guidance from medical experts such as the CDC, and in coordination with public authorities in Nevada and the City of Las Vegas, the NFL will modify its plans for the 2020 NFL draft," the league said in a statement Monday.

Player selection by clubs will be televised and proceed as originally scheduled, however the league said it was "exploring innovative options" as to how to conduct the process, with details coming at a later date.

"While this outcome is disappointing both to the NFL and to the Las Vegas Community, we look forward to partnering with the Raiders, the City of Las Vegas and the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority for a future NFL Draft as well as evaluating opportunities for other major NFL events in the Las Vegas in the future, including the Super Bowl," said NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.

KHL suspends playoffs for 1 week

The Kontinental Hockey League says it's suspending the playoffs for a week, but only to continue in a new format.

The KHL is widely considered to be the strongest ice hockey league outside of the NHL and is one of the few major sports organizations still operating in Europe.

Two of the last eight teams in the playoff bracket — Finland's Jokerit and Kazakhstan's Barys— have withdrawn due to concerns about the virus outbreak and related security measures. One game last week was played in an empty arena.

The league says in a statement that it will talk with Russian authorities about a way forward. The KHL spans six countries but all of the remaining teams in the playoffs are Russian.

The league adds that "the start date, the period and the detailed format of competition will be decided in the near future."

Popular Penn Relays cancelled

The Penn Relays, one of the oldest and largest track meets in the nation, has been cancelled in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

The Penn Relays were scheduled for April 23-25 and had been held uninterrupted since 1895. The event celebrated its 125th consecutive running last year. The Philadelphia-based University of Pennsylvania says it will attempt to host a substitute track meet at a later date in late May or early June. The new event wouldn't meet the standard Penn Relays format. The three-day event would shorten into a one-day event for youth, high school and open runners.

The Penn Relays has adapted to worldwide conditions in the past. The meet was altered in 1917 and 1918 when several colleges, including most Ivy League institutions, curtailed their track programs during World War I. During World War II, travel restrictions reduced participation and spectator attendance while gas rationing was in effect in 1943 and 1944.

Beach volleyball tour clears schedule through May 5

The international beach volleyball tour has postponed two more events, clearing the schedule of everything until May 6.

The FIVB says a three-star event that was supposed to take place this week in Gold Coast, Australia, and a four-star tournament next week in Cancun, Mexico, have been postponed because of travel restrictions in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The events are crucial for athletes trying to qualify for the Summer Olympics, with more points available at the higher-rated tournaments.

The FIVB says it is in contact with the IOC about "potentially revising the beach volleyball qualification system" for the Tokyo Olympics.

As of Monday, four of the last nine points-rich four- and five-star events have been postponed or cancelled.

Indy 500 a go — for now

Indianapolis Motor Speedway officials say they are holding off on postponing the month of May activities that conclude with the Indianapolis 500 on Memorial Day weekend.

The Indy 500 draws crowds in excess of 300,000.

"We are aware of the CDC's interim guidance suggesting the postponement of events involving more than 50 people over the next eight weeks," the speedway said in a statement released before 6 a.m. local time.

"Our priority is to do our part in protecting the public health while still conducting the 104th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge as scheduled on May 24. This continues to be a dynamic situation which we are monitoring constantly in co-ordination with federal, state, local and public health officials."