Members of the media work during a medal ceremony rehearsal at the Medal Plaza of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games in Beijing, China. (file photo)
A day after Switzerland’s team leader held talks about possibly postponing the Beijing Olympics because of the coronavirus pandemic, the IOC on Wednesday promised officials around the world that the Winter Games would go ahead as planned.
The Swiss Olympic Committee said the IOC gave assurances about next month’s event during a video conference call with the teams.
The International Olympic Committee also promised a case-by-case assessment of athletes who recover after testing positive for COVID-19 before traveling to China, the Swiss team said in a statement.
“The issue of postponement is no longer relevant to all of us,” Swiss team leader Ralf Stockley said in the statement.
The International Olympic Committee is hoping to avoid delays for the second time in a row. The Tokyo Games, originally scheduled for 2020, were postponed by a year. The decision was made four months before the scheduled opening ceremony.
However, Stockley, speaking in a Swiss television interview on Tuesday, raised concerns about going ahead with the Beijing Olympics amid a growing number of athletes infected with COVID-19.
“We should really discuss the possibility of postponing the Games,” Stockley told French-language state broadcaster RTS. “If we don’t have the best athletes out there, it’s going to be very difficult.”
After listening to the IOC on Wednesday, the Swiss Olympic team said it was happy to have a certainty on the subject.
Another Swiss concern that was downplayed on Wednesday was related to wait times after an athlete has recovered from a COVID-19 infection before being allowed to enter China.
The IOC and Chinese organizers announced that a panel of international experts would evaluate individual cases and handle the issue “in a more flexible manner”, the Swiss team said.
“This is a positive sign,” Stockley said, given the otherwise high current case rate. They must have been deprived of their dreams of participating.”
Nevertheless, the team noted the “very demanding” conditions for competition, qualification and preparation, with the opening ceremony on 4 February only 30 days away.
Stockley acknowledged Wednesday that there will “probably be a disappointment” for athletes who are unable to compete in the end.
Beijing’s organizers and the IOC are creating a health security bubble for the Olympics, with tighter testing and limits on travel and movement than at last year’s Tokyo Games.
The rules include a 21-day quarantine for athletes, officials and workers not fully vaccinated, daily testing even for those who are vaccinated, and keeping local staff within the bubble.
International fans are again being turned away, although tickets to attend events in stadiums will be sold to people living in China.
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