Just under two weeks before the start of the Olympic Games in Beijing, China and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) relaxed the corona measures slightly. For example, the so-called Ct value in the PCR tests has been reduced from 40 to 35, which means that the tests are slightly less sensitive. The organizers have also shortened the period in which someone is seen as ‘close contact’ to an infected person from fourteen to seven days.
“The organizing committee and the Chinese authorities have refined the corona measures in consultation with medical experts and the IOC,” the committee said. “The new measures will take effect immediately and apply retroactively. We have adapted them to the current reality and are intended to support the participants in the Games.”
With the return of the Ct value to the standard that applies in most countries, the participants who have already experienced the corona virus would be slightly less likely to receive a positive result.
A large part of the Dutch squad for the Winter Games will fly to Beijing on Wednesday. The athletes are regularly tested for the corona virus before departure and daily in China. The Games start on February 4.
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