Athletics news - Anniversary Games latest event to be cancelled due to coronavirus

"The decision has been made in light of the ongoing global pandemic," it said in a statement.

"British Athletics will continue to provide updates concerning the competition calendar and all other athletics activities, in collaboration with the Home Country Athletic Federations, as and when there is further information," added the statement.

UK Athletics CEO Joanna Coates added that while the organisation were deeply disappointed to have cancelled the event, safety was its paramount concern.

"We are hugely disappointed to confirm the cancellation of one of the flagship events of the global athletics calendar, but we must place the safety of the entire athletics family at the forefront of every decision we make during these unprecedented times and ensure we are following Government advice.

“Cancelling the event will have a significant financial impact on UKA and the wider sport. The revenue we generate from events - through ticketing, broadcast and sponsorship helps administer the sport and provide the essential governance services that we, as an NGB, oversee.

“We’re incredibly thankful to our commercial partners, some of which are continuing to support us during these tough times but there will be a substantial reduction in income from the cancellation of this event and this will have an impact moving forwards.”

Meetings in Doha Stockholm, Rome, Rabat, Eugene, Oslo and Paris have already been called off.