AS the coronavirus crisis wreaks havoc with the sporting calendar across the world, talks are taking place around the globe in a bid to make plans for when the action does eventually restart.

And while it was confirmed yesterday that a suspension of all professional football in England has been suspended until April 30, there is also a clear intention to ensure that the Premier League’s season will be finished.

Football is clearly not alone in facing problems following the outbreak of the virus, with cycling, athletics and golf all releasing statements clarifying that discussions are well underway into how and when the action will resume.

Organisers of the Tour de Yorkshire are hoping to secure its long term future following the postponement of the 2020 edition - the last on the current contract. It will eventually go ahead even if the coronavirus outbreak forces them to wait until next year.

While there continues to be debate as to whether the Olympics will take place this summer, even though the torch was passed on by Greece’s Olympic Committee chief Spyros Capralos to a delegation from Japan in a very-low key ceremony at the Panathenaic Stadium in Athens.

It was an event held behind-closed-doors which would normally attract thousands of spectators when the Tokyo Games’ representative and former Olympic swimmer Naoko Imoto received the flame, which is due to be taken around the country on a domestic relay beginning March 26.

Everything will be done to try to ensure the showpiece does go ahead, but given how qualification for many events has been rocked by the coronavirus there are huge doubts.

World Athletics president Lord Sebastian Coe said: “That (September) is possible, anything is possible at the moment. But I think the position that sport has certainly taken, and it was certainly the temperature of the room in the conversation I had the other day with the IOC and our other federations, is that nobody is saying we will be going to the Games come what may.

“And it may be that over the course of changing events, and they’re changing by the hour, that that is something that we have to confront. But it isn’t a decision that has to be made at this moment.”

The R&A has also suggested that this year’s Open Championship and AIG Women’s British Open, due to be held in July and August respectively, are in doubt too.

“We are undertaking a comprehensive evaluation of our plans to stage the 149th Open at Royal St George’s and the AIG Women’s British Open at Royal Troon, which are four and five months away respectively,” a R&A statement read. This includes examining a range of scenarios for staging the championships, with our focus on proceeding as planned, as well as considering other contingency options available to us.

"Our absolute priority is to ensure the safety of players, fans, officials, staff and all involved in our championships and that will be at the forefront of our thinking as we monitor developments.
"We have some time before we start building the infrastructure at both venues and so we are keeping the scheduled dates in place for The Open (July 16-19) and AIG Women's British Open (Aug 20-23) at this point.
"We recognise that this is a rapidly changing situation and we will keep everyone informed of any changes to our plans.”
Those comments arrived on the same day that a joint statement issued by the FA, Premier League, EFL, Women's Super League and Women's Championship confirmed the extension of the current shutdown of professional football by almost another month.
It had initially been hoped to be able to resume action on the weekend of April 3. However, with the coronavirus crisis escalating, it will not be possible to begin playing matches at the start of next month.
The footballing bodies have relaxed their rules on the current season having to end by June 1, and have described the situation as an "indefinite extension".
That implies there remains a strong desire to play out the current season to a completion, even if that means matches having to take place deep into the summer.
The joint statement said: "The FA, Premier League, EFL, Barclays FA Women’s Super League and FA Women’s Championship have collectively agreed to postpone the professional game in England until Friday 3 April at the earliest.
"This action, which will be kept under constant review, has been taken due to the increasing numbers of clubs taking steps to isolate their players and staff because of the COVID-19 virus. 
"It will also apply to all England team fixtures at every level and all FA competitions including the Emirates FA Cup and the Women’s FA Cup, along with academy and youth-team matches.
"The decision is being made purely on the number of cases requiring self-isolation and the impact on facilities. Given the steps being taken across clubs, there is no alternative but for today’s action. However, all parties are committed at this time to trying to complete this season’s domestic fixture programme and are liaising to establish appropriate options to do so. 
"We are liaising with the National League pyramids (men’s and women’s) and will continue to offer guidance and support. Any decision to continue playing or to postpone their respective competitions is a matter for each league as autonomous bodies within the game.
"We will continue to monitor all Government advice with the situation under constant review, with the priority being the health and well-being of all. Further updates will follow in due course."