Six Nations chiefs to hold crisis meeting

Six Nations chiefs will hold a crisis meeting on Friday to decide whether the tournament needs to be abandoned due to the foot and mouth outbreak.

Representatives from each country will join in a telephone conference to discuss the future of the competition.

Saturday's match between Wales and Ireland in Cardiff has already been postponed, and other matches are now under threat.

French Rugby Federation president Bernard Lapasset said: "The Six Nations Committee will be having an urgent telephone conference on Friday.

"With the situation such as it is today, there is a risk of postponing the matches scheduled for March and April until May."

Doubts now surround matches between France and Wales in Paris on March 17 and Ireland and England in Dublin on March 24.

But rugby officials in Britain believe there will be no time to reschedule these games and the whole tournament will have to be abandoned.

Racing has been the greatest sporting casualty of the livestock disease outbreak, with all meetings cancelled until March 7.

In motor racing, the Rally of Wales has been delayed until the present outbreak the disease has been eradicated. The two-day rally was scheduled to start in Wrexham on Saturday, March 10.