The National Championships were due to be held in Chengde in the Hebei province, which is approximately 225 kilometres north-east of the capital Beijing.

The Chinese Figure Skating Association confirmed that the event had been postponed, citing "recent outbreaks of many local clusters of epidemics".

It said it had taken the decision in the interest of athletes, coaches and other participants.

The seven-day event had been due to run from Monday (December 6) to Sunday (December 12).

China has pursued a strict "zero-COVID" policy towards the pandemic, with tough restrictions placed on international travel and several major sporting events cancelled since it began, including World Championships in rowing and taekwondo.

Stringent measures are also expected at the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympics, including a closed-loop management system for Games-related personnel, daily tests for the virus and a ban on foreign spectators.

International winter sports events have also been cancelled since the emergence of the Omicron variant of COVID-19, notably the Winter Universiade in Lucerne.

Chinese officials have admitted that the new variant may "pose some challenge to our efforts to prevent and control the virus", but remain confident that Beijing 2022 will proceed as planned.

The country has been staging test events for the Games, including recent World Cups in luge, snowboard cross and ski cross.

The Capital Indoor Stadium in Beijing is set to host figure skating events at Beijing 2022, and held the Asian Open Trophy in October as a logistical warm-up for the Olympics.

Next year's Winter Olympics are scheduled for February 4 to 20, and the Winter Paralympics from March 4 to 13.