Beijing When the German lugers climbed into their sports equipment at the start of their training in China on Wednesday, there was a special premiere. It was probably the first time in the history of the Olympic Games that the transport box for their sleds had previously been tested for Corona. China’s government is particularly nervous these days and doesn’t want to leave anything to chance. There is great fear that athletes and fellow travelers who traveled to Beijing for the Olympic Games will infect the Chinese population with the corona virus. And so Beijing is taking drastic measures.
Not only the thousands of athletes, helpers and journalists traveling with them, but also the many hundreds of tons of freight that had been transported to Beijing for the games had to be tested for the virus. Cargo that tested positive despite repeated disinfection was first quarantined for a few hours and only released again if the corona test was negative.
The training and preliminary competitions for the Olympic Games in Beijing began on Wednesday, and the grand opening ceremony in Beijing’s national stadium, the “Bird’s Nest”, is scheduled for Friday. It is already clear: It will probably be the most unusual games in history. The strict security measures that the state leadership has taken to prevent the spread of the corona virus in China are only one reason for this.
Because the sporting event is also taking place in a country whose leadership has been accused of serious human rights abuses against the Muslim Uyghur minority. The USA, Germany and other large nations are not sending government representatives to the games this time, as is usually the case – in some cases expressly in protest.
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Environmentalists also criticize the management of the host country, because the sports facilities are in places where there is hardly any snow and there is a lack of water. China’s authorities and Chinese organizers are also massively impeding reporting on the competitions.
Kuehne and Nagel transported 100 tons of freight from Germany to China
On the one hand there are those who would have preferred to cancel the games for human rights, environmental or health reasons – on the other hand those who want to make them a success despite the pandemic challenges for the athletes.
Just like Philipp Haberzettl and Janina Neumann, project managers for event logistics at the Swiss logistics company Kühne + Nagel. The company takes over the transport of the entire freight of the German Olympic Sports Confederation and various German and international television stations. This is also a huge undertaking in normal games – but a mammoth task for Beijing.
There is great fear that athletes and fellow travelers who traveled to Beijing for the Olympic Games will infect the Chinese population with the corona virus.
(Photo: Getty Images)
In the past few months, Kuehne + Nagel has transported 100 tons of freight from Germany to China – including the sports equipment and all the equipment for the 400-strong delegation from the German team: 14 bobsleighs, 16 luge sleds, 12 skeleton sleds, 400 bags of clothing. The magnum bottles of sparkling wine for the winners were also in the luggage. Even food for the high-performance athletes had to be transported the approximately 8,000 kilometers to China – the teams brought their own cooks with them to guarantee the athletes the best possible care.
All boxes and containers have gone through a disinfection marathon due to the Chinese government’s strict corona prevention measures. They already had to be disinfected in Germany, then again in China. Because the Chinese government is pursuing a zero-Covid strategy using draconian measures and has repeatedly blamed foreign packages or other freight for new outbreaks in the country with 1.4 billion inhabitants in the past few months – an approach that is unique worldwide.
The pressure is great – a test run was not allowed
The logistics specialists Haberzettl and Neumann have been in the Olympic bubble since January 22nd, which is intended to shield all visitors from the Chinese population, and ensure that all the boxes of the athletes and TV journalists reach their destination. They are supported by five other colleagues in Beijing who are outside the bubble and more than a dozen colleagues outside of China.
Everyone was under a lot of pressure this time. Because, and this is also a special feature of the games in Beijing, nothing could be rehearsed beforehand at test events. “There’s no second chance,” says Jörn Schneemann, director of global expo + event logistics at Kuehne + Nagel.
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Just like the athletes, Neumann and Haberzettl also need strong nerves for their job. It started as soon as we arrived. When they land in the Chinese capital on January 22, Neumann and Haberzettl are greeted at the airport by people in white and blue full-body protective suits. Throat and nose swabs are taken and luggage is disinfected. Only then do several buses go in a convoy to the venues.
Each accommodation in the “Olympic bubble” is approached individually. “We were already joking about whether it would take us longer to get to our hotel from the airport by bus than by plane from Germany to China,” says Haberzettl with a smile. They only arrive at the hotel in the evening, after seven hours on the bus.
The 36-year-old almost came too late for his first assignment in the morning immediately after arrival – the distribution of 16 trucks with material. Because people inside the Olympic bubble are not allowed to use normal transport – Beijing taxis and buses are taboo. Vehicles can only be booked with the Olympia app and must also be paid for with it. But there was a problem at first, there were only a limited number of Olympic taxis available.
The organizers of the games in Beijing have planned everything in such a way that cases of illness are detected immediately. The first course in the morning therefore takes him and Neumann to a throat swab. In each building, they first have to scan their identification cards – the last test is also stored there.
Already 232 positive corona tests in the Olympic bubble
You can move relatively freely between the sports facilities and accommodation. But the fear of getting infected always resonates – and clouds the time, which is actually a highlight after months and years, which precedes the logistics service to the organization. As of Wednesday, 232 people in the Olympic bubble had already tested positive for Corona.
Neumann, who spends a lot of time in the Olympic Village – usually the place where athletes and fellow travelers meet and chat – avoids contact with others, including the athletes. “You say hello in the hallway, but you don’t want to get too close to them because of Corona,” says the 29-year-old.
By Wednesday, 232 people in the Olympic bubble had already tested positive for Corona.
(Photo: Getty Images)
Haberzettl had a similar experience. The two have an important position. Because if one of the two fails, there are replacement staff who have been accredited by the company as a precaution. But the question is whether, in an emergency, it would actually work to smuggle them into the bubble.
Working with colleagues on site is also different. “Normally, after our arrival in Beijing, we would have first met in the office, had a coffee and looked together at what the next few days would look like,” says Haberzettl. “It’s completely falling flat now.” Although they’re in the same town now, they can’t see each other. The after-work beer is also eliminated.
When the games are officially opened with a big celebration in Beijing’s national stadium on Friday, Haberzettl and Neumann are already planning to transport the freight back. Even then it says again: first disinfect, only then can the transport crates be sent on their way from the Olympic bubble to the port.
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