Olympic organizer: COVID-19 cases in ‘controllable range’

A senior official at China’s Olympics Pandemic Prevention and Control Office on Tuesday said that coronavirus cases at the Beijing Winter Games are within an “expected controllable range” despite a recent increase.

“(The COVID-19 situation) is generally within our expected controllable range. So the Games participants, including athletes, and Chinese public do not have to worry,” Huang Chun, the office’s deputy director general, said, according to Reuters.

“As more people are entering China, the imported COVID-19 cases are increasing,” Huang added, attributing the rise in cases to authorities implementing more effective virus detection techniques.

The news service noted that at least 200 COVID-19 cases have been reported by the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics Organizing Committee since Jan. 23.

Olympic organizers reported 24 new COVID-19 cases on Monday alone, including 16 athletes.

Several athletes who were expected to compete in the Olympics have reportedly been ruled out due to contracting the coronavirus.

China has implemented strict COVID-19 measures, including nucleic acid tests, in order to prevent outbreaks inside the “closed loop” or bubble that separates all athletes and event staff from the public, Reuters noted.

The Canadian Olympic Committee released a statement on Tuesday saying that three of 414 members of its delegation in Beijing have been impacted by China’s COVID-19 protocols, according to the news service.

“Part of our strategy was to arrive early to allow time for confirmation testing and, if necessary, the Medical Expert Panel process to unfold,” it said.

The committee also said one athlete tested positive for COVID-19, but did not disclose their name.