Brilliant-Online Magazine | The Heart To Heart Issue | February 2022

BEIJING WINS AN OLYMPIC GOLD FOR CONTROVERSY

✦ Winter Olympics 2022

In a year with some heavyweight sporting events lighting up the calendar, it doesn’t get much bigger than the Winter Olympics. It is an occasion when somewhat lesser known sports such as the Skeleton, Skijoring, Sled Dog Racing, Bandy and Ski Ballet all get their day in the sun (or should that be snow?!).

However, sadly the build-up to the 2022 Winter Olympics has seen very little coverage afforded to the actual sporting action and major off-field controversy has dominated the headlines.

Beijing hosts the Games from Feb 4-20, with the Winter Paralympics taking place between March 4-13. In doing so, it becomes the first city to hold both the Winter and Summer Olympics, having successfully hosted the latter in 2008.

When China won the bid and then hosted the 2008 Summer Olympic Games it was heralded as a new dawn where the emerging super power would excel and show its sporting prowess on the global stage.

Fast forward 14 years, however, to a country now under the rule of Xi Jinping and the landscape and sentiment are light years away from the positivity leading up to the 2008 Games.

Like everything else, China’s authorities are trying to control all facets of the Games and regard the occasion as an opportunity to project a strong image to the rest of the world. This might work internally where residents of the country have little or no choice as to what narrative they are fed but globally few are buying it, as a myriad of controversies attest to.

It comes as no great surprise that COVID-19 is the major issue complicating affairs and one cannot fail to acknowledge the irony that it is the country that gave the virus to the world that is now being stymied by it. Some call it karma, others call it the inevitable consequence of negligent policies and the pertinacious approach to a zero-COVID stance ever since – China doesn’t want the disease that broke in Wuhan over two years ago to cloud its delivery of the sports spectacular or sully its overall image but that is something nigh on impossible to attain.

Other issues of note that have stoked the controversy in the buildup include charges of human rights abuse, specifically in reference to the Uyghur Muslim community in Xinjiang where critics claim China is committing ongoing genoicide and crimes against humanity.

Continual aggressive posturing in the South China Sea has resulted in fierce territorial disputes as China completely ignores UN law. Hong

Kong is falling from its perch as a booming and welcoming international finance and business hub to just another state controlled Chinese city.

Tibet has fallen victim to Chinese bullying for years and it appears only a matter of time before something serious happens with Taiwan.

Recently, the case with Chinese tennis player Peng Shuai has raised concerns as to citizens’ safety, freedom and the state’s stance on allegations of sexual abuse. There are also major worries around China’s vast array of surveillance tools and privacy with foreign athletes advised to leave personal phones and laptops at home during the Games.

Several nations have employed a political boycott in response to the issues above and more, with the likes of the USA, UK, Australia, Canada and Japan refusing to send any government officials to the event.

Political tensions aside, the fact there is insufficient snow in the Chinese capital and this Games is the first ever to rely wholly on the artifical variety seems symbolic as to the importance China places on image as opposed to truth and substance.

Whereas the occasion should be a celebration of sport and example of heroic achievement, nobody seems to be really focused on that and it is a great shame that it is the off-field drama and controversy that has taken centre stage.

The Games will take on an eery, bleak futuristic guise as all 60,000 participants will be restricted to an impenetrable giant bubble stretching nearly 200 kilometres that has been established in the capital, with daily tests, 21-day quarantines and nobody permitted to leave.

It sounds grim although, ultimately, maybe this is just emblematic of the crazy times we are currently living in?