The return of Elgin Highland Games has been postponed for the second time due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Organisers had been planning to bring the traditional spectacle back to the Moray town in July last year for the first time since 2004.
However, uncertainties due to Covid-19 in 2020 forced the group to postpone the return with it being confirmed today that it will be 2022 before it is back.
The event is the latest from this year’s Highland Games calendar to be cancelled alongside the Strathmore games at Glamis Castle, Oldmeldrum, Tomintoul and Dufftown.
However, annual gatherings in Ballater, Braemar and others due to be held later in the summer are still scheduled to go ahead.
A statement from the Elgin organisers warned that the ongoing pandemic made it very difficult to plan a large gathering.
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It adds: “Unfortunately we have taken the decision to cancel Elgin Highland Games 2021.
“Even with the likelihood that outdoor events may be able to go ahead in the near future, it is still too big a gamble for us to invest time and finances in.
“On the plus side, it gives us all the longer to make 2022 an even bigger and better event.”