WADA confirmed the annual event, due to be held at the SwissTech Convention Center on March 17 and 18, would not take place and will not be rescheduled..

An athlete session set for March 19 has also been cancelled.

The decision comes after the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health today announced a ban on large-scale gatherings of more than 1,000 people until March 15 in response to the outbreak of the virus, which has killed 2,876 people and infected over 84,000.

It could also have an impact on the SportAccord World Sport and Business Summit, set to be held at the same venue in the Olympic capital from April 19 to 24.

The summit was relocated to Lausanne from Beijing because of the virus, which originated in China and has been given the official title of COVID-19 by the World Health Organization (WHO).

Switzerland has reported 15 cases so far and the Swiss Federal ruling is designed to stop the spread of the virus.

The WADA annual symposium attracts officials from across the world.

Topics on the agenda for this year's event were set to include the Russian doping scandal and the 2021 World Anti-Doping Code.

WADA President Witold Bańka claimed the decision was made "to ensure the health and safety of the Agency’s staff and stakeholder community".

"WADA is disappointed to announce the cancellation of its Annual Symposium, which has become the annual event for anti-doping practitioners," Bańka said.

"The Agency commits to ensuring that most of the elements of the symposium programme are delivered via alternative means over the coming weeks and months."

WADA added it was continuing to monitor advice from the WHO and will "put other measures in place as needed related to staff and stakeholder travel connected to the Agency’s mission".

Dozens of events, including World Championships and Olympic qualifiers, have been cancelled, postponed or relocated because of the outbreak.

Tokyo 2020 and the International Olympic Committee have repeatedly insisted the Olympic and Paralympic Games will go ahead as planned.