Olympics “even more muted than Tokyo”: “The Guardian” criticizes Beijing 2022′s politicization

If the Tokyo Olympics were unpopular among the Japanese due to the covid pandemic, the Beijing Winter Games are “even more muted” than the summer ones, criticized “The Guardian” in an editorial commentary.

“The Tokyo Olympics, though unpopular in Japan due to fears of Covid’s spread, provided welcome diversion for many. Even so, they lacked the energy of previous Games, and so far Beijing’s event is still more muted. Winter sports such as curling lack the broad appeal of sprinting or swimming. China’s commitment to a zero-Covid strategy has kept its citizens well away from the Games, and the Games well away from its citizens”.

In another paragraph, the British newspaper analyzes what the Games mean for China.

“Hosting the Olympics is always a statement of national intent. In China, where the government breeds a national ethos to cement its legitimacy, it is a particularly political act (...).”

“The Games project China as a nation that can efficiently present an impressive large-scale global event even in the midst of a pandemic. Torchbearers included a People’s Liberation Army officer wounded as he commanded a regiment in a border clash with India, and one of the athletes who lit the cauldron was a Uighur skier, Dinigeer Yilamujiang (...)”.

“Whether or not the world warms to these Games, even the IOC may one day come to wonder if they were really worth it. And though Beijing wanted the Olympics, and still considers them useful, they do not look like the Olympics that it wanted”, concludes the editorial.