The qualification process for women's ice hockey has been disrupted ©Getty Images

The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) is set to reschedule the women’s qualification tournaments for the 2022 Winter Olympic Games.

Round one of pre-qualification for Beijing 2022 was scheduled to take place in Reykjavik, Iceland from December 17 to 19.

The event was due to feature Iceland, Hong Kong, Bulgaria and Lithuania, with the top three progressing to round two.

In a statement, the IIHF Council said it is "determined that the Olympic qualification tournaments will need to be rescheduled and are postponed until further notice".

Czech Republic are the highest ranked nation in the women's qualification tournament for Beijing 2022 ©Getty Images
Czech Republic are the highest ranked nation in the women's qualification tournament for Beijing 2022 ©Getty Images

"The competition and Coordination Committee will work out potential new scenarios when the women’s Olympic qualification tournament can take place," the IIHF added.

Round two of pre-qualification was due to be held from February 11 to 14, when three groups of four teams were set to battle it out to take the three spots to advance to the final qualification round scheduled to take place from August 26 to 29.

Czech Republic, Hungary, Norway, Germany, Denmark, Austria, Sweden, France and Slovakia have secured their place in the final qualification stage based on their ranking.

They will hope to join the United States, Canada, Finland, Russia, Switzerland and Japan, who have already qualified for Beijing 2022.