New Delhi, Mar 13 (IANS): The Athletics Federation of India (AFI) on Thursday withdrew its invitation to four countries for their participation in the upcoming senior Federation Cup scheduled to be held in Patiala from April 10 to 13.

The AFI said that the decision was taken following the Sports Ministry's advisory on the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic.

"Following the directions of the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports (MYAS) referring to the advisory of Ministry of Health & Family Welfare in the wake of the outbreak of coronavirus (COVID-19), AFI withdrew its invitation to athletes from Iran, Iraq, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka for participation in the Federation Cup (Senior) 2020," the AFI said in a statement.

"For the senior Indian athletes who are training to qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, all our competitions are lined-up, beginning with Indian Grand Prix (IGP) 1 in Patiala on March 20, then IGP 2 on March 25 in Sangrur, IGP 3 in Delhi on March 29 followed by Fed Cup Senior in Patiala. All these competitions will go ahead as planned for Indian athletes and we will follow all the guidelines as directed by the MYAS," AFI President Adille J. Sumariwalla said.

The AFI, however, did not specify as to whether spectators would be allowed at the Fed Cup. The Sports Ministry's advisory on Thursday had said that National Sports Federations (NSFs) should refrain from public gatherings of any kind during sporting events.