OTHER SPORTS

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The Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics Organizing Committee said on Tuesday that a total of 24 new COVID-19 cases were detected among games-related personnel on Jan. 31.

Eighteen of the cases were found among new airport arrivals, according to a notice on the Beijing 2022 official website.

Six others were among those already in the "closed loop" bubble that separates all event personnel from the public, five of whom were classified as either an athlete or a team official, the notice said.

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About 80% of the U.S. team’s athletes signed up to go to Friday’s opening ceremony at the Beijing Olympics, dimming any notion that they would skip the celebration in a show of protest.

The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee said 177 of its 223 athletes wanted to go to the ceremony at the Bird's Nest.

Not a single athlete who qualified chose not to come, leaving the political statements to the U.S. government, which will not send dignitaries to the Games in protest of China's human-rights record and other issues.

At a news conference in Beijing, held hours before the opening, CEO Sarah Hirshland said the athletes have been briefed — some of them multiple times — about the laws and customs of China and have been advised to make their own choices when it comes to protesting or demonstrating on Chinese soil.

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Saudi Arabia is inching toward changes that govern its national anthem and green flag, which is emblazoned with a sword and inscribed with Islam’s creed as the birthplace of the faith.

Late on Monday, the kingdom's un-elected consultative Shura Council voted in favor of changes, state-run media reported. It comes as the country’s young crown prince emphasizes Saudi nationality and national pride. While decisions by the council have no bearing on existing laws or structures, the vote is significant because its members are appointed by the king and their decisions often move in lockstep with leadership.

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The environmental impact of a Games which relies almost entirely on man-made snow add to the mix.

Adopting the catchphrase "Together for a shared future" for the Games, China, its ruling Communist Party and the International Olympic Committee hope all those worries will be forgotten once the action gets going on February 4.

China has been keen to stress that Beijing will take its place in Olympic history, becoming the first city to host both a Summer and Winter Games, and saying the Games will be "safe and splendid".

If the 2008 Games were the country's coming-out party, the Winter Olympics will take place in a China under President Xi Jinping which is increasingly belligerent on the global stage and boasting the world's second-largest economy.