Irish Olympic hopefuls fly back from Italy amid coronavirus outbreak

The Ireland rowers who were trialling in Northern Italy are on their way back to Dublin. The women's sweep group were in action at the Gavirate rowing course, which is 66 kilometres north of Milan.

The test was originally part of a major trial scheduled for the National Rowing Centre in Cork. Bad weather forced the cancellation of the trial, but the women’s sweep rowing group stayed on after a camp in Italy and trialled there.

The aim was to identify a four which will target the Olympic qualification regatta in Switzerland in May. An Ireland women's pair has already qualified for Tokyo.

The first World Cup regattas of the season are set for Saubadia on April 10th to 12th, and Varese, May 1st to 3rd. Both are in Italy.

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Irish citizens have been advised by the Department of Foreign Affairs not to travel to areas of Italy affected by a coronavirus outbreak.

In revised travel advice issued on Monday, the department notes the increase in the number of confirmed cases of coronavirus in Italy, and the restriction imposed by the Italian authorities in specific parts of the north of the country.

The advice follows news of four deaths in Italy and the first major travel restrictions to be imposed in Europe. Northern Italy has seen more than 50,000 people in a number of towns in the Veneto and Lombardy regions quarantined