Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics: Beijing Winter Olympics in COVID-19 Prevention Measures

The 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics is now 100 days away, and with that the prevention of COVID-19 is on the minds of all event organizers. Wukesong Sports Center, the venue for the ice hockey event, has deployed robots to assist in the prevention. Guo Tianqi has more. 

Science and technology has been a feature of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics since its inception. Given the worldwide severity of COVID-19, prevention measures were a key priority for the event organizers. 

Wukesong Sports center will be the venue of the ice hockey event, in which different types of robots will be deployed to ensure the safety of both the venue and personnel involved.

GUO TIANQI Beijing "This robot has a lead role in disinfecting the stadium. It sprays an atomized fog of disinfectant through the fan at the top and it can sterilize an area of 36 square meters in one minute. A single charge can cover 1,000 square meters."

The robot is also very intelligent. Its chassis is equipped with radar, which it uses to navigate around the arena. It can also connect to a mobile app which can be used to set the location it needs to sanitize and the amount of time it should spend in that area. Another robot can help remind staff and event-goers to wear their mask.

LI XINGLONG Robot Expert "If someone is not wearing a mask, the robot 'Little White' will automatically walk over and advise this person to wear their mask. The robot also has a contactless hand disinfection device on its head. This one robot can perform the work of three to four volunteers."

The use of robots has kept the number of staff at around 1,000 in the stadium. In addition to nucleic acid tests, Wukesong Sports Center has set up digital checkpoints. After checking a staff member's temperatures and scanning their QR codes, the health code, and travel and vaccination records of the staff will be transmitted to a smart terminal which can be monitored remotely or in real-time. This can be used to take action in the event of any potential COVID outbreak.

LUO QIAN Venue staff "Using the QR code is a very convenient and efficient way of collecting the necessary data. It's safe too as no other information is collected."

A trial run of an Ice Hockey game will be held in two weeks, around 30 robots will be deployed to help participate in these COVID-19 prevention measures.

Hosting an international sports event during an epidemic is bound to encounter many difficulties, as the safety of all participants and staff is paramount. However, to manage this whilst trying not to affect the athletes' competition and training poses new challenges. With this, technology may provide the solutions to these problems. Guo Tianqi, CGTN, Beijing.