China reports jump in Covid-19 cases between Olympic athletes and authorities

Daily Covid-19 infections among athletes and team officials at the Beijing Winter Olympics jumped to 19 from two the day before on Friday, with Games organizers warning of more cases in the coming days. .

Including athletes and officials, 36 Games-related officials were infected: 29 when they arrived at Beijing airport and seven already in the “closed circuit” bubble, which separates event personnel from the public, the organizing committee said in a statement on Saturday. 29).

“We are just going through the peak period of people arriving in China and so we expect to see the highest numbers at this stage,” Games chief medical officer Brian McCloskey told a news conference.

Organizers are “confident” in their Covid-19 prevention system, and infections are unlikely to leak to the public, McCloskey said.

Cases among athletes and team officials exceeded those of “other stakeholders” including media, sponsors and officials for the first time since China began reporting daily Olympic-related coronavirus case numbers on Jan. according to a Reuters count of earlier statements. .

“It’s annoying that every morning you have to wake up a little earlier especially for a PCR test. I think in a few days it will be like brushing your teeth,” Russian hockey player Anton Slepyshev told the RIA news agency.

“Everyone is worried that the test result will suddenly come back positive. But the reality is that we are living with Covid. We accept all risks and fears,” he said.

The Games will be held from February 4 to 20, in a bubble sealed off from the rest of China, where the government’s zero-tolerance Covid-tolerance policy has virtually closed the country’s border to international arrivals.