Preparations, training sessions and qualifiers for the Beijing Winter Olympics continue with obstacles. The event is scheduled to begin on February 4, but the spread of “Omicron” around the world has put on the ice even the mood of athletes to participate. From the Greek side, our country has secured five qualifiers and is claiming another one.
The eruption of the pandemic resulted in an increase in the expenses for the preparation of the Greek Olympic team, while some of our athletes fell ill or were injured. “We are suffering. Aggelis got sick and has not yet recovered. Shipments for races abroad are made with obstacles and the costs (for tests, quarantine, etc.) have multiplied.
Our country does not have a high level in these sports and we are obliged to go abroad. Restrictions vary from country to country and many problems arise. We also had the misfortune of injuring Alexandros Ginis and so we lost a place in alpine skiing. “Guinness was a candidate for a position even in the octave”, Timos Tsourekas, technical advisor of winter sports, told “K”.
Greece, so far, has won two qualifiers in alpine skiing, one for men and one for women (in the rankings are led by Giannis Antoniou and Giannis Proios and in the women by Maria Eleni Tsiovolou, followed by Maria Nikoleta Kaltsogianni and Fani Marmareli). In endurance skiing, the qualifications are one for men and two for women (followed by Apostolos Aggelis, followed by Giorgos Anastasiadis and Nikos Tsourekas, and for women Maria Danou, Paraskevi Papadopoulou and Nefeli Tita). Apostolos Aggelis also claims to qualify for the biathlon.
The spread of the pandemic has caused terror to the Chinese organizers, who have taken very strict measures. The “bubble system” has already been put into operation, according to which those involved in the event will not be able to get in touch with the local population. Those inside the “bubble” will undergo daily tests for COVID, while they can be transported by train, but in separate wagons. Unvaccinated people should be quarantined for 21 days before entering the “bubble system”. Authorities have “locked” some cities, although the cases are minimal.
As in the Tokyo Summer Games, the Beijing Winter Games will have no spectators from abroad, but the course of the pandemic will determine whether a limited number of people in the country will be able to watch them.
The scenario of postponing the Games does not seem to enter the table. Several countries have announced their missions, sports venues in Beijing have been completed and staff are working to welcome sports teams that will be able to overcome the obstacles posed by the pandemic.
Source: kathimerini.gr
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