The Olympic Council of Asia confirmed on Friday the 19th Asian Games, which were scheduled to be held in Hangzhou, China, have been postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

"Following detailed discussions with the Chinese Olympic Committee (COC) and the Hangzhou Asian Games Organising Committee (HAGOC), the OCA Executive Board (EB) today decided to postpone the 19th Asian Games, which were scheduled to be held in Hangzhou, China, from 10 to 25 September 2022," the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) said in a statement.

The council noted that the new dates of the Games will be announced soon "after carefully considering the pandemic situation and the size of the Games."

The name and the emblem of the 19th Asian Games would remain unchanged, it said.