NBC will not send announcers to Beijing for Winter Games
NBC will not be sending its announcers and most hosts to the Beijing Olympics due to continued concerns about rising COVID-19 cases worldwide and China’s strict policy about those who test positive. It will be the second straight Games for which the broadcast teams will work mostly out of NBC Sports headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut, rather than the host city.
“Something significant has changed virtually every day for the last three months, forcing us to adjust our plan numerous times. And I expect that to continue as well as the challenge of doing the Olympics,” said Molly Solomon, the head of NBC’s Olympics production unit. “With COVID’s changing conditions and China’s zero-tolerance policy, it’s just added a layer of complexity to all of this, so we need to make sure we can provide the same quality experience to the American viewers. That’s why we are split between the two cities.”
NBC Sports spokesman Greg Hughes said in a phone interview the network no longer plans to send announcing teams for Alpine skiing, figure skating and snowboarding to China. Those had been among the handful of announcers expected to travel, but NBC’s plans changed over the past couple of weeks.
Olympic athletes, media and workers will be cut off from the rest of China during the Games, with the only places they can go being competition venues, their accommodations and transportation between the two. China plans to isolate anyone who tests positive for COVID-19 for at least two days, pending a negative result. The country also has a mandatory 21-day isolation period for anyone entering the country who isn’t vaccinated.
https://apnews.com/article/winter-olympics-coronavirus-pandemic-sports-entertainment-health-027549305fa53617fa631caf5210be25
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