2021 European Open and European Amateur Open Canceled
2021 European Open and European Amateur Open Canceled
International Travel Restrictions and Local Uncertainty Drove Difficult Decision
The European Open, last held in 2019, will have to wait until at least 2022 to mark its 10th time celebration. Photo: Open Disc Golf
The COVID-19 pandemic has claimed yet another PDGA Major as event organizers announced the cancelation of the 2021 European Open and European Amateur Open for the second consecutive year.
The announcement marks the fourth professional Major lost to the pandemic, which led to the cancelation of all PDGA Majors in 2020 except the United States Disc Golf Championship and the Women’s National Championship.
2020 and, subsequently, 2021 would have marked the 10th iteration of the European Open, which will now have to wait until at least 2022 to celebrate the milestone.
“After a long and difficult spring with regular meetings we’ve reached a heavy decision to cancel both, European Open and European Amateur Open, this year,” Tournament Director Jukka Teräs said. “The international travel restrictions and local limitations on gatherings would diminish especially the European Open to something else than the grandeur that we want from our 10th time celebratory event.”
Teräs expressed optimism that the European Open would be able to run as normal in 2022, and registered players were sent instructions on converting their fees into preregistration for the 2022 event.
Other PDGA Majors, including the upcoming United States Women’s Disc Golf Championship as well as the 2021 PDGA Professional World Disc Golf Championships, are expected to proceed as planned. But the consequence of international travel restrictions were set to have an outsized impact on the sole European Major.
“We of course understand that Worlds and other U.S. based Majors will take place, and they should,” Teräs added. “The impact of U.S. players being absent from the European events is much bigger than Europeans missing from the U.S. events. We look forward to following Worlds and other premier events.”
Comments
Glad to see the PDGA and
Glad to see the PDGA and European Open Officials do the Right Thing. Tournaments will be back when people pay attention to the Fact we are dealing with a World Wide Pandemic.