San Fermin is cancelled

Maximum caution. The blow dealt to the world by the coronavirus is so severe that prevention takes precedence over everything else. If there were any doubts about the cancellation of major events such as the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, the Fallas in Valencia or the Holy Week in Seville, they were all suspended without hesitation. Despite the fact that many European countries are already thinking about plans for deconfinement, major festive events are also suffering from the grip of the pandemic: there will be no San Fermines 2020 or Oktoberfest.  

This is not the first time that the San Fermines, which take place every year between 6 and 14 July, have been suspended. Throughout history the patron saint's festival has suffered up to five cancellations. " We have brought you here to give you some news which, however expected, does not fail to cause sadness. We have taken the decision to suspend the San Fermin festival this year," explained the acting mayor, Ana Elizalde. "San Fermín is no exception to what is happening in the rest of the world. Like all other events of global significance and national holidays, it is suspended. Until we have a vaccine we will continue this way", explained the councillor.  

The German state of Bavaria also announced on Tuesday the cancellation of the Oktoberfest because of the coronavirus. The Oktoberfest, scheduled for September 19 to October 4, will not be held for fear of a second wave of coronavirus infections, despite the fact that Germany brought the outbreak under control last week. The world's biggest beer festival, with nearly six million visitors from home and abroad, had only been cancelled due to an outbreak of cholera that struck Europe in 1854 and 1873 in its 210-year history. 

"The risk is simply too great, you can't work at a distance and with masks in the meadow, it doesn't work", explained the head of the Bavarian government, Markus Söder, during a press conference on Tuesday which was picked up by the Efe agency. Söder was also not in favour of a reduced version of the Oktoberfest as an alternative.  

Söder explained that Oktoberfest was hanging by a thread from the moment that, in order to prevent the pandemic from spreading, the federal government and the Länder decided to suspend all major events until the end of August. "If the restrictions are not extended, that leaves only three weeks to prepare for a massive festival like this," said Munich's mayor, Dieter Reiter. Preparations for the Munich beer festival usually begin in June. 

Another event that was also scheduled for mid-year, the Madrid Book Fair, has also been moved to October. Also one of the big world events that has had to be postponed is the Tokyo Olympics, which has been moved to next year out of fear of avoiding contagion. Sporting events have been the hardest hit. The traditional Wimbledon tournament, held in June, has also had to be suspended; the American and European Cups have also been cancelled.  

The flood of cancellations of world events is proving to be significant because of the lockdowns and it is still unclear what will happen after the population takes to the streets. The cancellations announced on Tuesday indicate that, although citizens will be able to leave their homes again, the mass events are still causing fears among authorities of a second wave of contagion.