Italy Serie A training could resume in May

Italy's Sports Minister Vincenzo Spadafora has set May 4 as a possible date for the restart of training activities interrupted by the coronavirus pandemic.

Spadafora posted a video on Facebook Friday, hours after the government extended a nationwide lockdown that began on March 10 until May 3.

"We have witnessed some mild sign of improvement, but the situation is still dramatic," he said.

"It is in fact difficult to talk about improvement as every day we get harrowing news of people who have died."

The civil protection on Friday reported 570 deaths from Covid-19; the total tally of 18,849 is the world's highest.

Beside inviting citizens and sportspeople to remain at home to contain the infection, the minister said he has asked the sport federations to define sanitary protocols to guarantee the safety of athletes when they return to training camps.

It is believed that, if confirmed, the early May restart would allow the Serie A football league to play the 12 remaining games of the season, with a tentative completion in early August.

Rugby, basketball and volleyball have already cancelled their seasons.