The Diamond League has postponed its first three meetings of the 2020 season planned for April and May in Qatar and China because of the coronavirus outbreak. 

The announcement came after Qatar banned inbound passenger flights and prevented the entry of foreign nationals on Sunday, making the Diamond League the latest high-profile competition to postpone events as the pandemic shuts down world sport. 

"Due to the growing number of countries affected by the COVID-19 virus, the first three meetings of the 2020 Diamond League season, scheduled for April 17 in Qatar, May 9 and 16 in China, cannot be held as planned," it said in a statement. 

"The current plan is to stage the Shanghai event on August 13. New dates for Doha and the second meeting in China remain to be announced," the Diamond League said. 

The organizers said there was a possibility the events in China and Qatar could be held after the Diamond League Final in Zurich on September 9 to 11.