Thailand was initially scheduled to stage the event from September 1 to 6 this year before it was moved to November 10 to 15 and then March 24 to 28 next year.

But the FIVB has now postponed the competition to September 15 to 19 after receiving a request from the Asian Volleyball Association and the Thailand Volleyball Association.

The FIVB cited "extensive travel restrictions worldwide" and a "rise in COVID-19 cases" as the reasons for the decision.

The age limit will be unchanged for the event, with athletes having to be born on or after January 1, 2002.

Despite having a population of 70 million, Thailand has registered fewer than 4,000 cases and 60 deaths since the beginning of the pandemic.

The country has been singled out for praise by the World Health Organization for its handling of the global health crisis.

Just three new cases were recorded yesterday and were all from abroad.

FIVB has been severely impacted by the pandemic, with this year's Volleyball Club World Championships the latest event to be cancelled.

The Volleyball Nations League is among the flagship FIVB tournaments to be called off in 2020 along with the majority of Beach World Tour competitions.

A statement from FIVB read: "The FIVB looks ahead with optimism to the return of beach volleyball action.

"In view of this, frequent assessments are taking place in regards to health and safety protocols, international travel restrictions and policies."

The FIVB said it was working on the 2020-2021 calendar, with the aim of featuring as many one to five-star events across the globe as possible.