![]() ![]() Hu Jintao, China’s leader at the time, presided. The ceremony then took place in Tiananmen Square in front of thousands of spectators, though under intense security because of political unrest in Tibet. ![]() The contrast to 2008, when China first hosted the Olympics, was striking. International journalists were given less than 12 hours’ notice of the event - and those invited could only attend after a COVID test. The ceremonial lighting of the flame took place indoors at Beijing’s Olympic Park. Only a small delegation at Beijing’s airport greeted the flight that brought the canister carrying the flame. Wednesday’s ceremonies set the tone for a subdued Games. Those not vaccinated face 21-day quarantines upon arrival. Only vaccinated and screened residents of China will be able to attend as spectators, while athletes, broadcasters, journalists and others working at the Olympic sites will be confined to one of three bubblelike environments for their entire visit. The arrival ceremony, like the official lighting of the Olympic flame in Athens on Monday, unfolded without spectators, one of many concessions to COVID-19 that will severely restrict access to the Games, which begin on Feb 4.Ĭhina, with the “full support” of the International Olympic Committee, is planning to hold the Games with even greater health protocols than those in place during the Summer Olympics in Tokyo this year. ![]()
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