LONELY GAMES

Dozens of Athletes Trapped in COVID Isolation at Beijing Winter Olympics, Say Organizers

The figure puts pressure on Olympic bosses after complaints that sports stars who test positive are being badly fed and prevented from training.

Olympic organizers says a total of 32 athletes are currently being held in isolation at the Beijing Winter Games after testing positive for COVID-19, and the average stay in isolation is seven days, the AP reported. The figure will put pressure on the International Olympic Committee as it tries to balance the competing demands of athletes desperate to train and compete and their Chinese hosts determined to stop the Games becoming a super-spreader event. There has been a chorus of complaints from teams, and tear-filled social media posts from competitors, about the conditions in the special isolation hotels, with athletes locked away in small rooms with intermittent Wi-Fi, fed substandard food and prevented from training. Brian McCloskey, who heads the IOC’s medical panel, said most of those in isolation did not need treatment and 50 athletes have already been discharged. “We will allow as many people out of isolation as we can, but only as many as we can do safely,” he said.