Advertisement
Olympic fever? Not in a Beijing where the shadow of Covid-19 deepens the winter chill
- The Games will be held amid tight coronavirus controls, while foreign visitors have been banned and it is not clear if ordinary Chinese will be allowed to attend
- Organisers have promised a ‘simple, safe and spectacular’ event, but residents in the capital are not confident they will get to see much of a spectacle
Reading Time:4 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
3
The countdown to the Beijing Winter Olympics has entered its final month with the continued threat from Covid-19 and calls for an international boycott dampening the mood.
Advertisement
The Games, which begin on February 4, appear to have generated little public excitement within China and foreign spectators will not be allowed to attend the Games, which the organisers have promised will be “simple, safe and spectacular”.
The organisers have instituted far stricter Covid-19 containment measures than the Tokyo Games held last year.
Volunteers for the Games – the first of whom, 16 students from Beijing City University, were sworn in on Monday – will have to stay within a “closed loop” isolation bubble designed to eliminate any risk of the coronavirus leaking into the community from now until the end of the event.
01:49
Robot ‘coach’ helps Chinese curlers prepare for Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics
Robot ‘coach’ helps Chinese curlers prepare for Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics
Outside the bubble
The fear of an outbreak caused by the influx of visitors from countries that are dealing with surges in highly infectious Delta and Omicron variants have likely clouded excitement for the Games among Beijing residents.
Advertisement
Advertisement