OlymPicks: Two-Sport Paralympic Athlete Opts for Beijing 2022 Over Tokyo 2021, Olympic Village Set To Become Public Housing Post-Games
In OlymPicks, we highlight news, gossip, and developments regarding the buildup to Beijing's 2022 Winter Olympics.
One Olympian, two sports
For most of us, actualizing the level of discipline and ambition required to become an Olympic athlete is about as realistic as ascending the peak of Mount Olympus itself. And yet, for Canadian Liam Hickey, one sport seemingly isn’t enough to satiate his desire for elite sportsmanship. As a member of Canada’s wheelchair basketball and para ice hockey teams, the 22-year-old usually has two years between the Summer and Winter Games, during which he can set one sport aside while he trains for the other. Unfortunately, however, after the COVID-19 pandemic pushed Tokyo 2020 into 2021, it became clear that he would have but a mere six months between performances. Careful not to spread himself too thin, Hickey has since made the decision to focus his time and energy on the para ice hockey competitions at Beijing’s 2022 Paralympic Winter Games, citing Canada’s 2-1 overtime defeat by the US at 2018’s Winter Games in Pyeongchang. Speaking to Inside the Games last week, Hickey explained that “Losing the final like we did in 2018 has really motivated me to come back and make sure we win the gold medal.”
NHL players’ Olympic fate still undecided
In other ice hockey news, ever since the absence of players representing the US National Hockey League at the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, the sport’s athletes – not to mention its fans – have been eager to know whether they would have a presence at Beijing’s 2022 Winter Games. In fact, as of last July, it seemed like a done deal as the NHL and its Players Association (NHLPA) signed a bargaining agreement that resolved multiple sticking points, leading to headlines such as CGTN's It's Confirmed: NHL Players To Attend 2022, 2026 Winter Games. In actuality, that deal was but one hurdle to overcome if the 13-time gold-winning champs are to hit the ice next year, with the next obstacle being an agreement between the NHL, NHLPA, the International Olympic Committee, and the International Ice Hockey Federation, a set of negotiations that haven't yet been finalized, and actually led to the US team’s 2018 Olympic hiatus. Addressing the ongoing saga earlier this month, executive director of the NHLPA, Donald Fehr said of the talks between the NHL's governing bodies and its international counterparts, “Assuming the Olympics go forward in the ordinary course, you can always envision scenarios in which something would happen that would change the equation,” alluding to a scenario in which NHL players do not make the trip to the Middle Kingdom. However, he was quick to add, “But I don’t see it. I expect that players will be there, and it will be a dramatic return to the international stage for us.”
Who wants to live in the Olympic Village?
Meanwhile, back in Beijing, deputy director of the Olympic Park Management Committee, Yang Ping, recently told a press conference that the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Village is on pace to finish construction by June. To date, venues such as the National Speed Skating Oval (aka Ice Ribbon), the National Aquatics Center, and the National Indoor Stadium have all been completed, with 13 more spaces still being constructed around Chaoyang District. Particularly notable, however, is the fact that once the Games come to a close in mid-March 2022, the 2,300 beds reserved for international athletes and officials will become public housing. It was further pointed out that the village – and future residential area – will be “health and intelligence-themed,” though frankly, we have no idea what that means.
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Images: Zimbio, Sunrise Medical, Inside the Games
