Beijing 2022 will be the safe and unifying Olympic moment the world needs

After 14 years, the igniting once again of the Olympic flame at the Beijing National Stadium, or “Bird’s Nest”, on February 4 is bound to be a sensational moment, which will make Beijing the first city in the world to host both the Summer and Winter Games. A successful Beijing 2022 is China’s solemn commitment to the international community. In his New Year Address, President Xi Jinping declared that China will spare no effort to present a great Games to the world. And China delivers. Over the past six years, we have followed a green, inclusive, open and clean pathway to ensure the best preparations for the Winter Olympics. China welcomes friends from all over the world and hopes to, through the gathering, shore up unity and friendship in the global family. Beijing 2022 will be a green Games. A multifaceted approach has been taken to reduce the Games’ environmental impact. We are translating our vision of sustainability into action and making the Winter Olympics carbon-neutral, the first of its kind in history, by building low-carbon and eco-friendly sports venues. All venues will be run on 100 per cent green energy with an ice-making technology that produces zero emissions. This will cut standard coal consumption by 128,000 tons and carbon dioxide emissions by 320,000 tons by the end of the Winter Paralympics. Through these green Olympic Games integrating sports development into ecological progress, China is advancing regional growth and improving people’s livelihoods. At the same time, oriental wisdom is contributing to solutions for global environmental governance. Beijing 2022 will be a safe Games. Safety rules for the Winter Games must be firmly in place amid the pandemic. In the face of Covid-19, China is putting people first, focusing on the safety of Olympic-related personnel and the general public, and readying appropriate antivirus policies. The Beijing Organising Committee, together with the International Olympic Committee and the International Paralympic Committee, has published two Beijing 2022 Playbooks that outline Covid-19 countermeasures for the Games, such as pre-departure testing, closed-loop management and health monitoring. In today’s ‘contra-polar’ world, all boats may leak together To ensure the safe and smooth operation of the Games, Beijing has held 10 test events for over 2,000 overseas athletes under the closed-loop management system. This preparation work garnered “likes” from athletes and the international community. IOC President Thomas Bach hailed these preparations as a “miracle”. Beijing 2022 will be a unifying Games. Sport is a universal language; it serves as common ground regardless of borders, race and culture. Peace and friendship have always been part of the Olympic movement’s DNA. Given the manifold challenges today, the world needs more than ever the Olympic spirit of friendship, solidarity, fair play and mutual understanding. All countries have to navigate the complex global landscape together, as a community with a shared future for mankind, to secure a tomorrow where everyone wins. Last month, the 76th session of the UN General Assembly adopted a consensus resolution, co-sponsored by 173 member states, for a truce for Beijing 2022. The Group of 20, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation have also affirmed their support for the Games in joint declarations and communiqués. These manifest the strong confidence of the international community in the success of the Games in bringing together people from all over the world to protect the neutrality of sport and uphold unity and cooperation. Western boycott of 2022 Beijing Olympics would only prove US weakness The Winter Games are a stage for athletes, not a runway for politics; still, a few countries have said they would not send official delegations because of the so-called “Xinjiang human rights issue” – a lie driven by ideological hubris. In serving their political purposes, they risk politicising sport and sullying the Olympic spirit, as well as the principles of unity, cooperation and fair competition, even though the dignity and interests of all Chinese people and Olympic fans are at stake. Beijing 2022 will go ahead as planned anyway. The buzzing of a few flies cannot stop the wide participation of athletes or prevent other countries from joining hands for a shared future through the Olympics. Hong Kong is a city that champions sportsmanship and shares in national glory at Olympic events. At the Tokyo Olympics last year, the Hong Kong delegation produced its best ever results and presented to the world a confident China together with mainland athletes. In a few days’ time, the Hong Kong team will compete in Beijing. They will display passion and vitality again and unite Hong Kong further through their performance. The long-anticipated Beijing 2022 is just around the corner, with an updated Olympic motto, “Faster, Higher, Stronger – Together”. Let’s meet in Beijing for a simple, safe and splendid Games and start a new Olympiad as a community with a shared future for mankind. Liu Guangyuan is Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region