by The COVID-19 pandemic has caused another major event to be canceled. The 2020 National Matches at Camp Perry have been canceled according to an alert from the Civilian Marksmanship Program.
After thoughtful consideration and reflection, the Board of Directors of the Civilian Marksmanship Program announces the cancellation of the 2020 National Matches at Camp Perry.
“This decision was not arrived at lightly, but was prompted by restrictions resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. These matches date back to 1903 and have been held at Camp Perry since 1906,” said Judith Legerski, CMP Board Chairman.
“The health and safety of our competitors, participants, vendors, military support, volunteers and staff members is of the upmost importance — overriding even the historical imperative of maintaining the continuity of the Matches,” agreed Legerski, with Chief Operating Officer Mark Johnson and Programs Chief Christie Sewell.
“We were unable to come up with a manner in which we could safely produce the Matches. Housing and pit duty were amongst the many insurmountable problems faced by the CMP Board,” Legerski explained. The CMP looks forward to the 2021 National Matches at Camp Perry as the best marksmanship celebration ever! In the meantime, please stay safe and healthy at home, as we prepare for the new normal ahead of us.
All CMP operations have been shut down since mid-March and a full resumption of business remains undetermined. Full refunds will be made to those who have already registered.
The last time the National Matches were canceled was in 1950 due to the start of the Korean War. They resumed in 1951 and returned to Camp Perry in 1953.
By any benchmark you want, the largest sporting event in the world. Most competitors. longest event, largest ,”playing field”. Nothing short of the olympics comes close. Dennis the librarian shusher
More relevantly, have they ever been cancelled because of an influenza virus?