The last international event on the World Karate Federation calendar has been cancelled ©Getty Images

The World Karate Federation (WKF) has been forced to cancel its last international event scheduled in 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic.

A Karate 1-Youth League tournament had been scheduled to be held in Italian city Venice from December 4 to 6.

Last week, the Italian Government introduced further restrictions aimed at curbing the spread of coronavirus, which include a nationwide curfew and the closing of gyms and other facilities where people would ordinarily mix.

These restrictions will be in place until at least December 3, although there are now calls for the country to enter a nationwide lockdown as it has passed one million COVID-19 cases since the outbreak began.

With this in mind - and mandatory quarantine periods in place for many international travellers - the Organising Committee decided to call off the competition.

There will be no Karate 1-Youth League tournament in Venice this year ©Getty Images
There will be no Karate 1-Youth League tournament in Venice this year  ©Getty Images

It means that there are now no more WKF events scheduled in 2020.

Karate's global governing body has been forced to cancel or postpone numerous events because of the pandemic, including its flagship World Championships in Dubai, which have been pushed back to November 2021.

Karate 1-Premier League legs in Moscow, Madrid and Rabat were all cancelled, while the sport's Olympic debut has also been delayed by 12 months.