Beijing 2022: IOC president Thomas Bach urges people to be extra vigilant, says Covid-19 playbooks should be ‘way of life’
- In series of calls with various stakeholders, Bach says Games have “started now for all of us”
- Olympics boss urges all participants to take extra precautions before arriving in China
With less than a month to go before the start of the Beijing Games, International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach has said the event’s playbooks should be “a way of life” for everyone involved.
In a series of calls with athlete representatives from around the world, the National Olympic Committees and the International Olympic Winter Sports Federations, Bach said the Games had “started now for all of us” while the Olympic body urged teams to be “extra vigilant” because of the Covid-19 threat.
Joined by the Beijing 2022 Organising Committee, he urged those travelling to China to take all precautions ahead of arriving.
“We must do everything to ensure that the Olympic dreams of athletes are not taken away just days before departure,” Bach said. “The playbooks are not just a rule book – they should now be a way of life.”
The second version of the playbooks were released last month, and among the requirements are that all workers entering the closed loop bubble system have a Covid-19 booster vaccination at least 14 days before starting their role, provided they are eligible.
In a statement, the IOC said: “Now is a critical time for all Games participants who will travel to Beijing to be extra vigilant. They should already follow the measures laid out in the Beijing 2022 playbooks, before their departure to Beijing.”
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Athletes, officials and journalists attending the Winter Games are not required to have a booster to be admitted to the closed loop.
During the calls, some of the playbook rules were addressed again. Dr Richard Budgett, the IOC’s medical and scientific director, emphasised that athletes and Games participants with an essential role could continue take part, even if they were defined as a close contact to a person who has tested positive for the virus.
The IOC said “a special regime for close contacts” was in place for such cases, including testing twice a day and special arrangements for travel and dining.
Updates were also given by Juan Antonio Samaranch, the chairman of the IOC Coordination Commission for Beijing 2022, who said everything was on track “to stage safe Olympic Winter Games for all participants and the Chinese people”.
