Olympic 'boycott' nations 'staging a farce'

The United States, Australia, the United Kingdom and Canada will see Beijing's successful hosting of the 2022 Winter Olympics, whether their officials come to the Games or not, Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said on Thursday.

China has not sent invitations to those countries in the first place, Wang said at a daily news conference, after Australia, the UK and Canada joined the US to announce a "diplomatic boycott" of the Games.

"Sports have nothing to do with politics," Wang said. "The Olympic Games are a pageant for athletes and sports fans, instead of a stage for politicians to put on a show."

The four countries, which are among 20 countries that refused to sign the Beijing Winter Olympic Truce Resolution, "are all by themselves in making and staging a farce about not sending officials to the Games", and "have stood on the opposite side of the Olympic community", he said.

"We hope they will put into practice the Olympic spirit of 'together', instead of undermining the Olympic cause," Wang added.

The resolution, titled "Building a peaceful and better world through sport and the Olympic ideal", was adopted at the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly on Dec 2. Drafted by China and the International Olympic Committee, the resolution was co-sponsored by 173 UN member states.

The resolution's adoption shows the international community's support for the Olympic Movement and its resolve to maintain world peace, Wang said.

China welcomes athletes from all countries to compete in the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, but is firmly opposed to any politicizing of sports under the pretexts of "human rights and freedom", which is against the spirit of the Olympic Charter, he said.

"The US, Australia, the UK and Canada used the Olympics for their political manipulation. Such behavior is unpopular and self-isolating. They will surely pay a price for their wrongdoing," Wang said.

"Making an issue out of the presence of government officials at the Beijing Winter Olympics is in essence a political smear campaign," the Chinese embassy in the UK said in a statement on Thursday, adding that such politicization runs counter to the principle of the political neutrality of sport.

IOC President Thomas Bach said on Wednesday that the 2022 Winter Games should not be used to raise global tensions and the athletes' participation is worldwide consensus, Xinhua News Agency reported.

According to Bach, the IOC organizes the Games to unite the world, not to divide it.

"We are living in this confrontational, divisive world where the tensions are rising high. If the Games would even contribute to the tensions, it would be absolutely contrary to our mission," Bach said.