The virus has so far killed 260 people worldwide

A town in the Irish Republic has asked the Special Olympics Hong Kong team not to travel to County Tipperary for the games in June.

Clonmel Town Council said it had made the request because of fears over the Sars virus.

The Tipperary town had been due to host the 63-strong delegation from Hong Kong.

The virus, with flu-like symptoms, has killed more than 350 people around the world.

The World Health Organization (WHO) still advises people not to travel to parts of Hong Kong and mainland China.

Quarantine proposals

The Special Olympics is attracting teams from all around the world for the games in Ireland in June.

Towns on both sides of the Irish border are hosting delegations from the competing nations.

The Games' Organising Committee has also asked countries travelling to the Games not to travel through the WHO listed affected areas Games Committee

Meanwhile, it has emerged the organisers of the games plan to ask five areas affected by the Sars outbreak, to impose a voluntary 10 day quarantine on athletes and officials who plan to travel to Ireland for the games in June.

The teams affected are China, Hong Kong, Canada, Taiwan and Singapore.

In a statement on Tuesday, the organisers said: "The Games' Organising Committee is in constant contact with the Department of Health & Children regarding many different medical issues including the threat of Sars in Ireland.

"The responsibility for developing and implementing policies and procedures to address this threat of Sars rests with the Department of Health and Children."

The statement said the committee was "fully committed to implementing whatever health measures are recommended by the Department of Health and Children".

"As a precautionary measure, the Games' Organising Committee has also asked countries travelling to the Games not to travel through the WHO listed affected areas on their journey to Ireland in June."

Scientific teams are racing to produce a vaccine against the new strain, but have warned that this may take years.

Experts say that a vaccine may only offer limited - and temporary protection.

Scientists believe that the current strain is transmitted through droplets coughed out of the lungs, but are still not certain about other possible routes of transmission.