Officials in Vietnam had suggested last month that postponement was likely, and it has now been confirmed.

The SEA Games are due to take place in 2022 instead, but dates have not yet been determined.

A new window for the event will be determined by the SEA Games Federation Council

"The SEA Games Federation members praised the work done thus far by the Vietnam Organising Committee but took note of the current conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic in the South-East Asian region", an Olympic Council of Malaysia statement confirming the postponement said.

Vietnam has hosted the SEA Games once before, in 2003, when Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City shared responsibility.

The country initial avoided the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic, but cases have risen sharply in recent weeks.

In Ho Chi Minh City, the epicentre of the country's outbreak, a stay-at-home order, a ban on more than two people gathering and the closure of public transport are all set to be implemented to curb the spread of infections.

In Hanoi, public gatherings involving more than 10 people have been banned.

On Monday (July 5), Vietnam reported more than 1,000 new COVID-19 cases in a day for the first time, and did so again for each of the following two days.

Securing the health of the more than 10,000 athletes, officials and other participants due at the Games - plus the fact many have not been able to train during the pandemic - were cited previously as reasons for postponement of the SEA Games making sense.