Hi Erik, which sports achievement at these Games will stay with you the most?
‘Absolutely the 10 kilometers from Nils van der Poel. The fact that he becomes Olympic champion with a world record makes it extra special. Ever since I was little I have been a fan of that distance. I really like riding a schedule. Some skaters go in fast, others start slow and then go faster and faster. I find that fascinating to follow.
‘For journalists, Van der Poel is also a grateful athlete, because he always has interesting things to say. When it turned out that the Dutch were trying to manipulate the conditions on the ice rink during these Games, Van der Poel called this “corruption”. He has also published his full training program as he retires from skating. That boy does all kinds of things that we don’t see from others.
‘I thought the whole doping case involving figure skater Kamila Valjeva was a low point. That child is 15 years old. I think it’s ridiculous that minors can participate in the Games. The Netherlands also has a 17-year-old figure skater with Lindsay van Zundert. I grant her that participation: she is a special person. But actually it shouldn’t be. It’s unhealthy for girls to be pushed into a top sports mold at such a young age.’
The Netherlands finishes sixth on the medal table. Is the Dutch team satisfied with that?
‘Two athletes are very satisfied: Suzanne Schulting and Irene Schouten. Together they have won eight of the seventeen medals. The people of NOCNSF are also very positive, but there is something to be said for that. Many athletes will be less satisfied, I think.
‘In Sochi (in 2014, red.) the skaters won a lot. You may wonder if that was a normal situation. Here most skaters have not won any medals. In short track, there could have been a medal for the men. But that sport is rather unpredictable.’
Ultimately, 98 athletes tested positive for corona. Can we conclude that China has managed to organize this coronaproof event?
‘Yes, but at a price. Several athletes, for example the Dutch skier Adriana Jelinkova, have ended up in very painful situations. If they were infected, they couldn’t get back into competition until late or they were subject to a strict regime.
‘It was perhaps not so bad for the athletes in the Olympic village. They benefit from clarity and good conditions. They were there in themselves. But the Games were completely devoid of emotion. I don’t think that’s good for the athletes. There was a Chinese audience on invitation, but with the foreign athletes that really didn’t go further than a polite round of applause.’
What was it like for you to work in these circumstances?
“It was quite a mind-numbing experience. There are gates in front of our hotel, which cut us off from the rest of Beijing. We had to take a bus every day to the central media center. If you wanted to eat or drink something there, you sat between plexiglass screens. Even when you’re working.
‘From that media center you could take a bus to the ice rink. You weren’t allowed to walk that chicken end. You also didn’t have much freedom of movement around the track. In Pyeongchang (in 2018, ed.) I sometimes visited some family or other people involved in the stands. Apart from the fact that those people were not present at these Games, you didn’t get any further than the press gallery, the press center and the mixed zone.’
These Games were often the subject of fierce political discussions. Did you get anything from that around the skating rink?
‘New. We, Western journalists, were involved in that, but no one else. At IOC press conferences, Chinese journalists asked if the athletes were happy with the food in the Olympic village. The organization could then say that the athletes were indeed very satisfied.
‘The Western journalists asked about human rights violations and Valjeva’s doping case. No clear answers were then given. Then another Chinese journalist asked whether the athletes inspire the youth in China.’
The Winter Games will be in Milan in four years. Is there perhaps something that this organization could learn from Beijing?
‘Not really. The only positive thing about a bubble like these Games is that once you’re in it, everything is relatively easy. In the hotel we had to go through a kind of scanner with our bags. After that, we didn’t have to be checked anywhere. That is different with other Games.
‘It kept getting worse. Towards the end of these three weeks it became very oppressive that you do not have a meter of freedom. I’d rather have an Olympics where you can just cross the street for a cup of coffee than this madness.’