Photo: Zhang Wenhong

Before COVID-19 is completely eradicated globally, the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games offer valuable experiences of bridging the differences on how countries respond to the pandemic. Hopefully, these experiences can be extended to other type of exchanges, Zhang Wenhong, a renowned infectious disease expert in Shanghai, said on Monday, noting that through the Olympic Games, "we saw a new possibility of controlling the pandemic while simultaneously carrying out barrier-free exchanges with the world ."

Zhang gave credit to the COVID-19 measures imposed during the Winter Olympics, saying that they "demonstrated surprising wisdom."

The doctor said that based on the experience from the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics, Beijing put forward six principles which include full scale vaccination, closed loop management and nucleic tests. 

Only 437 COVID-19 cases were reported with the closed-loop management system, most of which exhibited mild symptoms, and there were no cluster infections reported within the closed loop. 

The Beijing Organising Committee for the 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games and medical workers have endured a "test to the future," said Zhang, explaining that they sticked to the zero-COVID policies.

"We insist on finding a better way of life under the shadow of the pandemic, to look for safe and better possibilities of exchange."

Meanwhile, the efficacy rate of vaccines has been proved by the Winter Olympics, as no severe cases were reported among those who contracted the virus within the biosecurity "bubble." 

"Sufficient and effective vaccinations are the strong scientific support and basis for us to step out of the pandemic," said Zhang.

He concluded that the significance of the Beijing Winter Olympics is that it scrapped off COVID-19 isolation protocols that coupled with international travel under special circumstances, bridged the gap between countries with different COVID-19 policies, and maintained the balanced of sticking to dynamic zero-COVID while opening to the world.

There are years to come before the world can tame the virus and have balanced responses against it. Yet, Zhang said people's urge for free movement cannot be neglected. 

"I believe the wisdom gained with the Winter Olympics will inspire us to achieve a precise control of the coronavirus. The Winter Olympics will be an important milestone for us to march forward to a better future," Zhang mentioned.

Regarding the control of COVID-19, Zhang remarked that the closing curtain of the Beijing Winter Olympics is not the end, but the start.