The 2020 Tour of Chongming Island will not be held as scheduled after the UCI postponed future races in China due to the coronavirus outbreak.

The cycling governing body issued a statement Friday providing information about the virus and announcing the postponement of all UCI races in China in April and May.

The Women's WorldTour Tour of Chongming Island was scheduled to take place May 7-9, but will be rescheduled for a later date to be determined on March 15.

Two other women's races were also postponed: the Tour of Zhoushan Island (scheduled for May 12-14) and the Tour of Taiyuan (scheduled for May 31).

This latest development sees the UCI taking matters into its own hands after the Tour of Hainan was postponed by its race organization earlier this year and two Chinese teams withdrew from the Tour de Langkawi.

There have been 74,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus so far, with more than 2,000 deaths. This new virus, which causes respiratory problems and pneumonia, originated in Wuhan, in eastern China's Hubei province.

Cycling followed other global sports that canceled major events, including the World Athletics Indoor Championships and the Chinese Formula One Grand Prix.

"Bearing in mind the potential scale of the epidemic and the data on confirmed clinical cases, there are good reasons to postpone all competitions until epidemiological data are more certain," the UCI said in a statement.

"The UCI, together with the Chinese Cycling Association, has taken the decision to postpone the cycling events originally scheduled for April and May.

Unless the spread of the virus can be slowed, other races in China, and possibly beyond, could also be at risk; the UCI is particularly concerned about the Tour of Guangxi, which will be held in October. The event is the final stop on the men's World Tour and in recent years has served as the site of the UCI Gala.

Other races in China include the Tour of Qinghai Lake in July, the Tour of Xintai in August, the Tour of China and National Championships in September, and the Tour of Tai Fu Lake in October.

The postponement of the Rugby Sevens in Singapore and Hong Kong puts other events outside China at risk, as well as the Olympic Games in Japan this summer. Earlier this month, organizers of the Tokyo 2020 Games ruled out the possibility of postponing or canceling the Games, saying no such action was being considered.

For races outside of China, the UCI said it would monitor "delegations from countries at risk."

"It is important for the UCI to look after the health of all athletes participating in international races. The UCI therefore stresses the importance of strictly adhering to the WHO recommendations and the guidelines set by national public health authorities," the statement said.

"The UCI will collect information on the travel and training locations of these delegation members (athletes and staff) during the three weeks leading up to the Congress.