Beijing Winter Olympics: organisers feel ‘great pressure in epidemic prevention and control’

Games in February will have no international spectators and organisers will enforce a vaccine mandate for anyone entering Olympic ‘bubble’

Winter Games bubble will be much stricter than measures in Japan for the recent Tokyo Olympics

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The 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics is expected to run February 4-20. Organisers expect over 2,000 overseas athletes, team officials, international technical officials and timing and scoring professionals to visit China to take part. Photo: Getty Images/TNS

Published: 4:29pm, 4 Oct 2021Updated: 4:34pm, 4 Oct 2021

Beijing Winter Olympics organisers faced “great pressure” because of Covid-19, they said on Monday as China ramps up its preparations with a series of test events.

February’s Games could be the most restricted mass sporting event since the pandemic began, with no international spectators allowed and a vaccine mandate for anyone entering a strictly enforced “bubble”.

Those who have not been vaccinated, including athletes, must quarantine for 21 days on arrival in the Chinese capital before they go into the bubble.

Olympic organisers will try out many of the measures in a series of domestic test events, international competitions and training for overseas athletes that will begin on Friday and last several weeks.

“We expect that over 2,000 overseas athletes, team officials, international technical officials and timing and scoring professionals will come to China to participate in various competitions,” Yao Hui, venue management chief on the Beijing Winter Olympics organising committee, told a briefing.

“We face great pressure in epidemic prevention and control.”

China has virtually sealed off its borders to keep Covid-19 infections out, but has allowed entry to test-event participants – mainly from Asian countries.

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