Olympics meaningful even without fans, Tokyo 2020 chief says ahead of Beijing

TOKYO: Next month’s Beijing Winter Olympics can still be meaningful even with the general public locked out because of Covid-19, a top official from last year’s pandemic-delayed Tokyo Games has said.

China on Monday cancelled plans to sell Beijing Olympics tickets to the public as the number of coronavirus cases in the country reached its highest level since March 2020.

Beijing 2022 chiefs said they will instead “organise spectators to watch the Games on-site”, without explaining how they will be selected.

The pandemic-postponed Tokyo Olympics were held almost entirely behind closed doors last summer, and Tokyo 2020 CEO Toshiro Muto said his experience had shown the Games can thrive even without full…