Concerns and controversies at the 2022 Asian Games

According to the AFP, an official of the Olympic Council of Asia whose name not specified, spoke to the news agency on 22 April 2022 that the Games was facing the "possibility" of being postponed, after a rumour that it would be moved to the next year (2023). If so, it would follow the lead of many other international sporting events, notably the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, which was postponed by one year to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic conditions and restrictions. Such statements were based on the prolonged lockdown of Shanghai - some 160 km north-east to the host city Hangzhou - starting in late March 2022, less than half a year away from the Games, when most of its residents were put in lockdown and facing consequences of it. Husain Al-Musallam, director-general of the Olympic Council of Asia, claimed that although no official decisions were made regarding such statements at the time being, "but there is a possibility that it will be postponed". The 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing held in February 2022 and concerns on possibility to be held behind closed doors as considering to risk of potentially avoiding superspreading event.[1]

However, on 23 April, Olympic Council of Malaysia president Norza Zakaria denied such statements saying, "The Asian Games 2022 in China is going ahead, se have checked with OCA (the Olympic Council of Asia) and the organising committee." [2]