NBC will not send announcers to Beijing for Winter Olympics due to COVID-19 regulations

NBC will not send announcers to Beijing for the 2022 Winter Olympics amid coronavirus concerns.

“Something significant has changed virtually every day for the last three months, forcing us to adjust our plan numerous times. And I expect that to continue as well as the challenge of doing the Olympics,” said Molly Solomon, head of NBC’s Olympic production unit.

"With COVID's changing conditions and China's zero-tolerance policy, it's just added a layer of complexity to all of this, so we need to make sure we can provide the same quality experience to the American viewers. That's why we are split between the two cities," Solomon continued.

This is the second time in a year that NBC has announced that it will be covering the games from abroad. During the Tokyo summer Olympics last year, most of the network’s announcers covered the event from the United States.

"We’ll still have a large presence on the ground in Beijing, and our coverage of everything will be first-rate as usual, but our plans are evolving by the day as they are for most media companies covering the Olympics,” said NBC Sports spokesman Greg Hughes.

Despite not sending announcers, NBC has sent 250 employees to China, mostly technical staff and NBC Olympics President Gary Zenkel.

“We are in a closed loop. It is restrictive access, but it does allow us to access the broadcast center and venues,” said Zenkel.

Throughout the Olympics, athletes, media, and workers will only be allowed to go to the competition venues, their accommodations, and transportation between the two. They will be cut off from the rest of China.

The Winter Olympic Games will take place from February 4th to the 20th in Beijing. However, China will not sell tickets for the games due to the "grave and complicated situation of the COVID-19 pandemic."