Tourists play on snow tubes at Oynak ski resort in Moyu County, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Jan. 9, 2022. Located on the southern brim of the Taklimakan Desert, Moyu County barely snows in winter. In order to boost its winter tourism and extend the tourism season, the county built Oynak ski resort by making artificial snow, fueling people's passion for winter sports here. (Photo: Xinhua)

 "The attempt to politicize sports events undermine the legitimate rights and interests of athletes from all over the world and also constitutes an affront to the Olympic spirit mentioned in the Olympic Charter," Xu Guixiang, a spokesperson of the regional government of Northwest China's Xinjiang, said at a press conference on Thursday in response to the US-led West's attempt to sabotage the Beijing Winter Olympics by hyping up the existence of "forced labor" in the Xinjiang region.

Anti-China forces in the US-led West fabricated political lies on the pretext of "forced labor" in Xinjiang and did not send official and diplomatic representatives to the Beijing Winter Olympics, which is a despicable act that goes against the historical trend, Xu noted.

As pointed out in the Olympic Charter, "the practice of sport is a human right."  Maintaining the neutrality of the sporting movement and opposing the misuse of sports and athletes for any political purpose is also the consensus of the international community, especially the national Olympic committees and the athletes.

Leaders and government officials in many countries and regions recently said that the Olympic Movement should not be politicized and they expressed support for the smooth hosting of the Beijing Winter Games, Xu stressed at the press conference.

The 10th Olympic Summit recently held by the IOC released a declaration stressing that the summit stands firmly against any politicization of the Olympic Games and sport. 

The Beijing Winter Olympics is not only a grand gathering for all athletes and fans of winter sports, but also a grand gathering for the international community to enhance solidarity and friendship, rather than a stage for political manipulation, Xu emphasized.

A video showing local herdsmen sending off Olympic athletes on horseback holding the Chinese national flag was also shown at the press conference, which then went viral. 

"Local herdsmen expressed their joy and good wishes for the opening of the Beijing Winter Olympics in this way, which also reflected the common aspirations of more than 25 million people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang," the spokesperson said.

Global Times