KUALA LUMPUR – The Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) are confident that Beijing will be able to stage a successful and safe Winter Olympics from Feb 4-20 amid concerns over the rising number of Omicron variant COVID-19 cases.
OCM president Tan Sri Mohamad Norza Zakaria said the organisers had set strict standard operating procedures (SOP) and a Games bubble known as ‘closed loop’ to contain the spread of the pandemic.
“I am very sure that Beijing will become an awesome and excellent host. It is going to be a very successful Winter Games. With the playbook, safety protocols, the bubble that has been created and (the fact that) they have fewer cases compared to the rest of the world, I think it’s the safest place to be.
“I am very sure that Beijing is the place all athletes want to go to and achieve their dream,” he told a press conference after the ceremony to hand over the Jalur Gemilang to the Malaysian contingent chef de mission Moira Tan here today.
Malaysia will be represented by two alpine skiers – Jeffrey Webb, 23, in men’s slalom and Aruwin Idami Salehhuddin, 17, in women’s slalom and giant slalom – at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
Malaysia made their Winter Olympic debut at the 2018 Pyeongchang Games in South Korea, with figure skater Julian Yee, 24, finishing 25th in the men’s singles and Jeffrey ending up 68th in the men’s giant slalom.
