Diamond League Postpones 3 More Events Due To Coronavirus Pandemic

The Diamond League postponed three more events due to the coronavirus pandemic on Friday, wiping out the entire early season calender for the elite athletics circuit. Events in Stockholm on May 24, Naples on May 28 (moved from Rome in January) and Rabat on May 31 has been pushed back, the Diamond League said in a statement. "The dynamic global spread of the COVID-19 disease, the travel restrictions expected to be in force for some time and above all concerns over athlete safety have made it impossible to stage the competitions as planned," the statement added.

The decision comes just over a week after the organisation pushed back the opening three events of the season, in Doha on April 17, Shanghai on May 16 and another Chinese venue that was yet to be named, on May 9.

New dates for the events will be announced "as the extraordinary situation makes a reliable plan possible," the statement said.

World Athletics president Sebastian Coe said it was crucial that the season is not resumed too quickly.

"We want to get the athletes back to competition as quickly as we can, but there is no certainty," said Coe Friday.

"There is no guarantee about when it will be safe and secure to allow our athletes back into that competitive arena."

Global sport is at a virtual standstill as the world grapples with the deadly COVID-19 virus, which has killed thousands and has left more tha three billion people living under lockdown.