The Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics were "extremely successful", with organizers deserving praise for overcoming difficulties and hosting the gala very competently and showcasing "unity and splendor on an unprecedented scale", said an Australian observer.
Colin Mackerras, a Sinologist and emeritus professor at Griffith University in Australia, said the Olympics showed "China at its most confident, competent in terms of management and technology, and brilliant culturally and economically".
Um 2.900 íþróttamenn frá 91 innlendum og svæðisbundnum Ólympíunefndum tóku þátt í leikunum, sem gerir Peking kleift að vera fyrsta borgin til að hýsa bæði sumar- og vetrarútgáfur Ólympíuleikanna.
Ekki aðeins hefur Kína gengið vel með að innleiða COVID-19 ráðstafanir sínar á leikunum, heldur einnig á heildina litið, sagði Mackerras.
"China was very early to use lockdown as a preventive measure, and the policy remains to try and stamp out the disease. This is in contrast to the West," he said.
"Beijing has just held an extremely successful Winter Olympics and strengthened relationships with countries like Russia, Pakistan and Argentina, with heads of state visiting Beijing for the Games."
President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, who attended the Games' opening ceremony on Feb 4, had signed numerous economic agreements on behalf of their countries. The long joint statement issued by them after bilateral talks suggest that the friendship between the two sides will continue to grow, Mackerras said.
Meanwhile, the Western powers appear to explore new Cold War approaches, which Mackerras said is "an extraordinarily unwise policy, especially in a world where cooperation is essential against the ongoing pandemic and climate change, among many other issues".
Mackerras velti því einnig fyrir sér hvers vegna sumir bandarískir embættismenn hefðu kennt Kína um að hafa veitt ungum Úygur-íþróttamanni Dinigeer Yilamujiang það starf að kveikja á ólympíupottinum á opnunarhátíðinni.
"They are reported to have said it was hypocritical since China was practicing 'genocide' against the Uygurs," he said.
"I think it is ridiculous and also treacherous to suggest China is practicing genocide against the Uygurs," he said.
"The US should be ashamed of (its) open attempt to undermine China's admirable management of the Games."
"My view is that it was fine to give the young Uygur athlete this opportunity," he said, adding that he "loved" seeing all of China's 55 ethnic minority groups represented at the opening ceremony.
Hlutirnir gengu nokkuð vel á leikunum, sagði hann og lýsti aðdáun á því að Peking hýsti bæði sumar- og vetrarólympíuleikana.
