China Cycle 2003 Postponed

SHANGHAI, China (April 22) - The Shanghai International Exhibition Company Ltd. (SIEC) has decided to postpone the China Cycle Show 2003 which was scheduled from May 3 to 6 in Shanghai. As of yet, the show co-organizer has not set any new dates for the show. According to Jin Sheng-ling, manager of the China Cycle show's co-organizer SIEC: "We decided that China Cycle 2003 will be postponed". This decision was made on an extraordinary meeting on the evening of April 21. Exhibitors who asked the show organizer to postpone the show forced the final decision. "We shall inform exhibitors and visitors about the new and exact dates as soon as they are finalized," says Sheng-ling. After causing a big drop in the number of visitors and buyers at this year's Taipei Cycle Show, there was little doubt that the flu-like SARS virus would also affect the China Cycle Show. Because of the spreading of the SARS epidemic in the Far East, Bike Europe heard that companies who had booked booths at the China Show contacted organizer SIEC about cancellations of their participation. Among those companies was Shimano. After contacting the SIEC about the participation of Shimano, the show organizer stated: "The headquarters of Shimano informed their Shanghai office to cancel participation, but this local Shimano company is reconsidering their final decision after we contacted them, because the SARS situation in Shanghai is not serious. The SARS virus has only been found in a few areas of China where it is now under effective control. Due to the fact that in Shanghai there's no single case of SARS; Shanghai is considered a safe city." However, during the Easter weekend Chinese authorities issued statements in which it is said that the SARS virus has affected more areas in China and more people, killing 94 people so far. These statements together with the cancellations of both exhibitor's booths and visitors must have influenced SIEC in their decision to postpone the show. (JB)