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China’s National Games pose key test for Covid-19 controls ahead of Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics

  • Event beginning in Xian on Wednesday will attract tens of thousands of spectators – a stark contrast with the empty stands during the Tokyo Games
  • The event will be a major test of the country’s zero-tolerance approach to the coronavirus and spectators will have to be vaccinated and tested

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Illustration: Lau Ka-kuen
China is not taking any chances with Covid-19 as it prepares for the National Games – a critical test for next year’s Winter Olympics in Beijing.
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The host city Xian, capital of the northwestern province of Shaanxi, has enacted stringent restrictions as it gears up to accommodate tens of thousands of spectators for the games, the domestic equivalent of the Summer Olympics, which officially start on Wednesday and run until September 27.

Held once every four years, the games will be one of the first major sporting competitions to allow fans to cheer on athletes in person in the coronavirus era, although teenage and adult spectators must be fully vaccinated and have given a negative nucleic acid test within the previous 72 hours.

The presence of fans will be a significant contrast to the empty stadiums at the Tokyo Olympics, particularly since both have very similar programmes, except for the addition of extra martial arts in the Chinese games.
Spectators cheer the torch relay for China’s National Games. Photo: Getty Images
Spectators cheer the torch relay for China’s National Games. Photo: Getty Images
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The event may also influence the Covid-19 protocols for the Beijing Olympics next February and – if successful – help justify the authorities’ “zero tolerance” policy, which has seen strict travel and border controls imposed, neighbourhoods going into lockdown over just a few cases, mass testing and vaccination drives.

The aggressive approach to the pandemic has also seen international sporting events cancelled or relocated, including Women’s Tennis Association tournaments and the Formula 1 Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai.

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