Shortened Olympic torch relay begins in Beijing

The three-day torch relay for the 2022 Winter Olympics began in Beijing on Wednesday, The Associated Press reported. 

The first day of the relay, which was shortened due to coronavirus concerns, opened at Olympic Foreign Park with China’s first internationally competitive speedskater, Luo Zhihuan, running the first leg. 

Besides Lou, other torchbearers participating in the event include Chinese Astronaut Corps captain Jing Haipeng, film director Zhang Yimou and NBA Hall of Famer Yao Ming. 

The torch will be carried through Beijing’s three Olympic zones, starting in the downtown district of the city before heading to Yanqing district and heading to Zhangjiakou in the city’s Hebei Province, according to the AP. 

Luo, 80, expressed his excitement to be the first person to start the torch ceremony, saying it has been a decades-long aspiration. 

“I’ve never participated in the Winter Olympics, so I had hoped our country could host the Winter Olympics and I had the dream for nearly 60 years,” Lou said. “Today my dream has come true … How happy I am!”

Torch relay participants also were required to go through health screenings two weeks before the event, the AP reported. 

This comes as Beijing officials enforced a “zero tolerance” approach to the pandemic, implementing strict restrictions and mass testing when a real or suspected virus case pops up. 

Most countries are currently dealing with a winter surge of COVID-19 infections as the omicron variant has become the dominant virus variant. 

The U.S., Great Britain, and other allies recently announced they will not send diplomats to the Winter Olympics in protest of human rights violations by China’s Communist Party, the AP noted.