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Amidst all the speculation of the 2022 Asian Games being postponed owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Olympic Council of Malaysia has shut down all the rumors, saying the mega-event will go on as scheduled.
The 2022 Asian Games are slated to take place in Hangzhou, China between September 10 and 25, 2022.
Earlier, a senior official working with the Olympic Council of Asia governing body told AFP on Thursday (April 21). that there was no confirmation regarding the postponement. The official, though, confirmed that it was still a possibility.
Most international sporting events have been shelved in China ever since the COVID-19 outbreak. However, the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics were held amidst a strict bio-bubble in February.
The president of the Olympic Council of Malaysia, Norza Zakaria, has put an end to rumors and confirmed the event will go ahead as planned. He told AFP:
"The Asian Games 2022 in China is going ahead. We have checked with OCA (the Olympic Council of Asia) and the organizing committee."
Hangzhou announces all 2022 Asian Games venues pass inspection
Earlier, the Chinese organizers had delivered the latest update confirming that all 55 competitive venues for the 19th Asian Games this September are ready for the athletes.
Lu Chunjiang, the official in charge of operations at Hangzhou Olympic Sports Center, told state broadcaster CCTV:
"We're now just making a few final adjustments and improvements to the facilities."
The last of the venues to pass this inspection test was the Keqiao Yangshan Sport Climbing Centre in Shaoxing on March 31.
The 19th Asian Games will be held in Hangzhou along with five co-host cities throughout the Zhejiang province in eastern China.
This year's Asian Games theme of “Green, Smart, Economical, and Ethical’ has been inculcated in the construction of venues through the use of environment and intelligence technology.
One of the major principles of venue construction was to make full use of existing buildings through renovation. This was done to reduce expenses and to guarantee the legacy of the venues.
