Asian Olympic chiefs have hailed the progress being made on the under-construction venues for the 2022 Asian Games after work resumed following a closure of several weeks due to the coronavirus outbreak.
The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) said work is on track on the project, which covers 32,500 square metres and includes the velodrome, five other venues and villages for athletes, media and technical officials.
The OCA said construction officials are confident that the flagship velodrome in Chun’an County will be completed on schedule by the end of 2021.
The Hangzhou Asian Games Organising Committee (HAGOC) said construction work could resume on February 11 – 24 hours after restrictions were relaxed in Zhejiang province. On February 27, the organising committee said that construction had resumed on 30 of the 40 projects being built for the 2022 Asian Games.
Workers must undergo temperature and health checks on a daily basis before entering the site.
“This is very good news coming out of China and it highlights the effectiveness of the measures to contain and prevent the coronavirus in the city of Hangzhou and the province of Zhejiang,” said Husain Al-Musallam, the OCA’s director general.
“We have full confidence and trust in the Chinese Olympic Committee and the Hangzhou Asian Games Organising Committee that they are making the safety of the people their top priority. The OCA supports the decisions of the COC and HAGOC and will continue to work closely with them in the coming weeks and months.”
The 19th Asian Games, which attracts nations from across the continent, is due to take place from September 10-25, 2022. Over 10,000 athletes will take part in 40 sports.
Hangzhou is the capital city of Zhejiang in eastern China, which was the first province to declare the highest level of emergency in response to the coronavirus outbreak in January. The region of 57 million residents began to relax restrictions on February 10.
Images: Olympic Council of Asia
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