Beijing Olympics 2022: China to quarantine unvaccinated athletes at Winter Games

Exceptions may be granted for athletes and team officials on a case-by-case basis for medical reasons, according to the first version of the “playbooks” that were released by the Beijing organising committee, the International Olympic Committee and the International Paralympic Committee. These rules also apply to stakeholders including officials, sponsors and media.

This requirement is more stringent than what was asked of athletes at the Summer Olympics in Tokyo earlier this year. There, participants were “encouraged” to get vaccinated while not required to have been. 

China has pursued a zero-tolerance approach to containing Covid that has included steps such as closing its international borders, mass testing and aggressive contact tracing. Still, infections have flared intermittently and increased in frequency since the highly infectious delta variant was first identified in the country in May. With just over three months to go before the opening ceremony, the host city itself has seen a recent rise in infections.

“Vaccines are proven to reduce infection with and transmission of Covid-19 and are a key tool in enabling activities to be carried out safely,” the playbooks read. “It will be mandatory to be fully vaccinated at least 14 days prior to departure for China, in order to be allowed in the closed loop system without quarantine.”

Once inside the event, athletes are being asked to report immediately if they have a positive Covid test, at which point they will be isolated at either a designated facility or hospital. They will not be allowed to compete, the playbooks said, adding the length of the isolation period will be determined by the Chinese health authorities based on the severity of the infection.