There have been some major issues at the Beijing Olympics over the past few weeks, and it looks like the Chinese government is doing its best to cover up some of them.
As the Winter Olympics wrap up on Sunday, Nathan Fenno of the Los Angeles Times tweeted that he and others staying in the Beijing bubble have been denied access to several Olympics-related websites.
Hello from the Beijing Olympics, where our hotel Wi-Fi is now blocking access to several Olympics-related venues “for security reasons” as the Games enter their final day.
— Nathan Fenno (@nathanfenno) February 20, 2022
Fenno is not the first member of the media to report a problem accessing certain sites.
The Wifi of the Media Center of the #Olympic Bubble seems to be censored. It is not behind the Chinese firewall (and therefore only non-Chinese personnel have access to it!). But some pages do not open. As@RadioFreeAsiaInasmuch as@RFA_ChineseInasmuch as #China #censorship pic.twitter.com/CbE9lWnFqp
— Tamara Anthony (@TAMANTH) February 13, 2022
Although troubling, this is hardly a surprise. Censorship is nothing new for the Chinese government, and we have seen it in other sports as well.
Many athletes and members of the media are probably happy that the Olympics are coming to an end.
Pictured: 4 Feb 2022; Beijing, China; The Olympic rings are lifted during the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics at the Beijing National Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Michael Madrid-USA TODAY Sports
