The 2020 Intermot motorcycle show, which has served as a glitzy platform for exciting new motorcycle premiers from major manufacturers for decades, has been cancelled amidst coronavirus safety concerns. Intermot was the stage for the unveiling of the Suzuki Katana in 2018 and also of its original model some 38 years earlier. Originally scheduled to take place from 6 to 11 October in Cologne, Germany, the biennial show attracts thousands of visitors for business and fandom. While other events are returning to the same venue with limited floor space this year, Intermot organisers have said that the show ‘depends on its appeal as an experience’ and have hence decided to opt-out of it and go for a digital version instead.
“An event that depends on its appeal as an experience and event cannot be held in this form at this point in time and thus does not meet the expectations and needs of the industry,” Chief Operating Officer of Koelnmesse (the exhibition centre housing the show) Oliver Frese, and General Executive Manager of the German Motorcycle Industry Association, Reiner Brendicke, said in a joint statement.
“Our customers’ resources for 2021 are already under heavy strain as a result of the SARS/Covid-19 crisis. As an important part of the motorcycle industry, however, and particularly in difficult times, we want to actively support our partners and are now working full steam on a digital format.”
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This is the second motorcycle show to be cancelled in Europe with the UK’s premier biking event Motorcycle Live announcing cancellation of its November 2020 show earlier this month. Now, the German motorcycle spectacle will play out online before the end of this year. Dates for the online show are yet to be decided.
“With the digital Intermot news stream, we are creating a communication platform that will provide sustainable inspiration for the industry and the motorcycle community alike,” the statement continued. “We can then turn our full focus to the event scheduled for 2022.”