The World Under-20 Championships in the Kenyan capital Nairobi have been rescheduled for August 17-22 next year, World Athletics announced on Thursday.
The event will take place a week after the Tokyo Olympic Games, which are scheduled to be held from July 23 to August 8 in 2021.
In March, World Athletics suspended the Championships which were to be held from July 7-12 due to the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. By then, sporting activities and mass social gatherings in Kenya had been banned while training camps for athletes had been closed. International flights in and out of the country had also been suspended.
World Athletics President Sebastian Coe said that the body had done its best to select dates which they believed were achievable and gave athletes and event hosts the best opportunity to perform in front of a global audience.
“The disruption caused by the global pandemic has made it more difficult to schedule international events over the next two years but we want to give as much certainty as we can to our athletes, Member Federations, host cities and partners,” Coe said.
World Athletics clarified that athletes aged 16, 17, 18 or 19 years on December 31, 2021 will be eligible to compete.
Kenya was awarded hosting rights for the U-20 Championships in July 2018 on the strength of its successful hosting of the World Under-18 Championships in 2017.
