German team refuses to play virus-hit China at Volleyball Nations League event

Players on the German national volleyball team refused to face China rivals a few days after some of their opponents tested positive for COVID-19, costing the team a forfeit loss on Thursday.

The men's Volleyball Nations League game in the Philippines was canceled "even though the Chinese athletes were cleared by local authorities after testing positive," the International Volleyball Federation said in a statement.

China was awarded a 3-0 victory in Quezon City.

The German volleyball federation said 21 members of the Chinese delegation had tested positive on Saturday. It requested follow-up PCR tests on the Chinese players before agreeing to play but organizers deferred to local health regulations, the federation said.

On Wednesday, China forfeited its game against France because of the virus cases.

China is scheduled to play Argentina on Friday as games continue in the Philippines through Sunday.

The Volleyball Nations League is a worldwide series played by 16 countries in June and July.

The German federation said it was concerned any positive tests in its own delegation could prevent the team from traveling to Japan for games starting July 5.