Cycling event postponed in Delhi due to blast

Lahore: The Tour de International Race in Delhi has been postponed due to the bomb blast there and even though the Pakistan Cycling Federation claims to have incurred losses because of the cancellation, it has promised to participate whenever the event is organised.

The blast that took place outside the High Court in New Delhi killed at least 11 people and wounded 76. Idrees Haider Khawaja, the secretary of the Pakistan Cycling Federation, said they had been informed by their Indian counterparts to not send the cyclists to Delhi. "We had prepared to send an eight-member team to Delhi but we have been told the event has been postponed as the Indian government has directed the organisers to postpone the event for an indefinite period because of the bomb blast incident," he said. CFI Secretary Onkar Singh also confirmed that the Tour de Delhi race has been postponed until a new date is finalised. "It`s really unfortunate," Singh told a Pakistani channel. "This awful incident here has led us to postpone our event. The government has withdrawn its permission for next week and after that we`ll come up with a new date with Pakistan`s participation remaining intact." Khawaja said the squad had prepared well for the event. "It`s indeed sad as we have spent a lot of money in preparation for the race," said Khawaja. "It all went in vain but we have another race coming up in Syria for which we are sending our top four cyclists later this month." PTI