Winter Olympics to only allow 'selected' spectators

Not that it's a huge surprise to anyone after the crazy couple of years we have lived through, but the Winter Olympics in Beijing, set to start next month, will reportedly only permit "selected" spectators at the Games, according to the Associated Press. 

A statement posted by the Games' organizing committee states the decision to limit tickets is to make the Games more enjoyable for those who are able to attend.

"Given the difficult and complicated work of controlling the epidemic, and to protect the health and safety of those involved with the Games, the original plan of offering tickets to the general public has been altered toward spectators from selected groups," the statement said.

Organizers had already determined that spectators from outside the country would not be permitted at the games because of a spike in COVID-19 cases in the city.

China itself has tightened up entry into the country and has beefed up testing in the wake of multiple COVID-19 surges due to the omicron variant.