The international race walking championship, scheduled to be held for the first time in Ranchi on February 15-16, has lost much of its sheen, thanks to the deadly coronavirus outbreak in China.

Six countries — China, Singapore, Brunei, Malaysia, Philippines and Hong Kong —have backed out of the competition.

Now, only four countries — Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Maldives and Bhutan — will be part of the event.

Instead of 70 international athletes, around 20 will now take part in the championship.

“The six countries have decided not to take part in the championship because of coronavirus,” said Jharkhand Athletics Association (JAA) president M.K. Pathak.

The 3rd International Race Walking Championship will be held at Mega Sports Complex in Hotwar. The 7th National Race Walk Meet will also be conducted at the venue.

The international competition will serve as a qualification for this year’s Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan.

The twin events are being organised by the JAA under the auspices of Athletics Federation of India (AFI) for the first time.

The disciplines at the international meet will include 50km race walk for men and 20km for both men and women.

In Olympic Games, The qualifying time for men in the 20km category is 1 hour and 21 minutes. For the 50km category, the qualifying time is 3 hour and 50 minutes. For women contestants in the 20km group, the qualifying time is 1 hour and 31 minutes.

Pathak said they had planned to conduct both the national and international championships in Harmu, but the idea was dropped owing to vice-president M. Venkaiah Naidu’s visit to Ranchi on February 16.

“More people would have been able to watch the competitions if they were held in Harmu,” Pathak added.

Six technical officials from France, Belgium and Malaysia and 75, including 60 from Jharkhand, will be part of the two-day championship.

Athletics Federation of India (AFI) allotted the competition to Ranchi after Chennai decided against hosting the events.

Sources said over Rs 20 lakh would be spent on hosting the competitions efficiently. Though the JAA has written to the state government for help, but things don’t look positive.

“We have not received a single paisa from the government for the competitions in Ranchi. We would like to organise the international event with the help from our well-wishers ,” a JAA source said.