The time has come again to watch athletes from all over the world ski, snowboard, bobsled, and skate their way to a gold medal. However, as with the Tokyo 2020 summer olympics, Covid is becoming an obstacle in the way of these victories.

China is implementing strict protocols to combat COVID, specifically the new, highly contagious Omicron variant.

So far, 78 Covid cases have been confirmed among staff arriving for the Winter Games. However, in good news, no Covid cases have been reported in athletes or coaches.

The Olympics are being held in a “bubble,” similar to the way the NBA season was held in ESPN Wide World of Sports. Overseas Olympics participants will enter this bubble and can not travel out of it until leaving the country.

Athletes, coaches, and staff are required to be vaccinated or quarantine for three weeks and present a negative COVID test prior to entering the bubble. Additionally, Olympic participants and staff will be required to take daily PCR tests.

Outside of the bubble, many restrictions have been implemented for Chinese citizens. According to cbsnews.com, “anyone who goes to a drugstore to buy cough or or cold medication, or even painkillers or fever reducers, is automatically flagged for a mandatory COVID test.” Additionally, many cities have been put into lockdown where COVID cases have been detected.

BBC News states that after the first Omicron case was confirmed in Beijing, China decided not to sell tickets for the general public. Now, there will be no domestic fans, no general public, and only certain invited groups in the audience.

Brian McCloskey, chair of the Beijing 2022 Olympics medical expert panel, tells Insider, “the target is not zero cases. The target is zero spread.” Ultimately, a fanless, strict protocol Olympics, is not what every athlete hopes for. But, their hard work and dedication deserves to be recognized, and they’ve earned the chance to represent their country.