Grandera won the 2002 Singapore Cup

The 1m 2f contest, which was due to be run on 17 May, is part of the World Racing Series and is the country's richest race with a purse of SG$3 (�1m).

"The Club and Singapore Airlines deeply regret that the Sars outbreak in the region has made this decision necessary," said Singapore Turf Club president and chief executive Yu Pang Fey.

However, the Audemars Piguet Queen Elizabeth II Cup in Hong Kong, which is the first leg of the World Series, will go ahead this Sunday despite the fact that the territory has also been hit by Sars (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome).

The Singapore Cup, which has only been run three times, was won last year by the Frankie Dettori-ridden Grandera, the colt who eventually went on to clinch the World Series.