Formula One's Chinese Grand Prix has been postponed due to coronavirus, organisers say.

The fourth round of the F1 Championship in Shanghai on 19 April is the latest sporting event in China to be cancelled or delayed.

The virus, now named COVID-19, has killed more than 1,100 people in China.

Race organisers said while the Chinese Grand Prix is "an important part of the F1 calendar with many passionate fans", they have decided it can no longer go ahead as planned.

F1's governing body, the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), said it had accepted a request from the promoter of the Chinese race to postpone the event.


In a statement, the FIA said: "As a result of continued health concerns and with the World Health Organisation declaring the coronavirus as a global health emergency, the FIA and Formula 1 have taken these measures in order to ensure the health and safety of the travelling staff, championship participants and fans, which remains of primary concern."

The FIA said it would continue to work closely with all those involved in staging the race and to monitor the situation as it develops.

:: Listen to the Daily podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Spreaker

It added: "All parties will take the appropriate amount of time to study the viability of potential alternative dates for the Grand Prix later in the year should the situation improve.

"The Chinese Grand Prix has long been an important part of the F1 calendar with many passionate fans. The FIA F1 community looks forward to racing in China as soon as possible and wishes everyone in the country the best during this difficult time."

The decision means there will be no race in the F1 calendar between the Grand Prix in Vietnam on 5 April and the Netherlands race on 3 May.

There have now been more than 44,000 cases worldwide of the new coronavirus strain, which the World Health Organisation has officially named COVID-19 - CO for corona, VI for virus, D for disease and 19 for the year it emerged.

The last F1 race to be postponed was in 2011, when the Bahrain Grand Prix was affected by the Arab Spring uprisings.

The Mobile World Congress - the biggest annual get-together in the telecoms industry - has also been cancelled due to the outbreak.

Organiser GSMA announced the move on Wednesday after major companies including BT, Vodafone and Nokia said they were pulling out.

The conference had been due to take place in Barcelona later this month.

It typically draws more than 100,000 visitors to the city.

GSMA said: "The global concern regarding the coronavirus outbreak, travel concern and other circumstances, make it impossible for GSMA to hold the event."

Which other sporting events have been called off, postponed or moved due to coronavirus?

Athletics:

The World Athletics Indoor Championships from 13-15 March in Nanjing, China, has been postponed until 2021

The Hong Kong Marathon which was due to take place on 8 February has been cancelled

Golf:

The HSBC Women's World Championships was set for Singapore at the end of February, but has been called off

The Honda LPGA Thailand, a women's professional gold tournament, in Pattaya, has been cancelled

The Blue Bay LPGA, scheduled for the start of March on the southern Chinese island of Hainan, is now also not taking place

Football:

The Chinese Football Association has postponed domestic matches, with the Chinese Super League supposed to start on 22 February

Asian Champions League fixtures involving Shanghai Shenhua and Shanghai SIPG have been rescheduled

Sydney will now host an Asian Olympics women's qualifying tournament between Australia, China, Taiwan and Thailand, which had already been moved from Wuhan to Nanjing

Tennis:

The Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Group I event which was due to be held in Dongguan, China has been cancelled after Kazakhstan refused to host it

Motor Sport:

The Chinese Formula E Grand Prix in Sanya on 21 March has been cancelled

Coronavirus: How many people are at risk?

Boxing:

Amman in Jordan is set to host the Asia and Oceania International Olympic Committee boxing qualifiers instead of Wuhan

Snooker:

The China Open in Beijing has been called off

Skiing:

The FIS World Cup in Yanqing, China, on 15-16 February has been cancelled

Basketball:

The Women's basketball Olympics qualifiers have been switched from Foshan in China to Belgrade, Serbia.

:: Listen to the Daily podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Spreaker

Hockey:

India women's hockey tour of China has been cancelled

The FIH Hockey Pro League matches between Australia and China, set to be played on March 14 and 15 in Chengdu, have been put on hold

Badminton: