NHL Players Will Not Compete at Beijing Olympics
2021-12-23
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1The National Hockey League, or NHL, says it will not send players to the Olympic Games in China because of COVID-19 concerns.
2NHL chief Gary Bettman made the announcement Wednesday following a sudden, sharp rise in cases of the disease among players.
3At least 50 professional hockey matches have been postponed as a result.
4The 16 days of winter sports competition begins in Beijing on February 4.
5The NHL says it will use that period to play the regular season games it had to postpone.
6"Our focus and goal have been and must remain to responsibly and safely complete the entirety of the NHL regular season and Stanley Cup playoffs in a timely manner."
7This will be the second straight Olympic season the NHL will miss.
8It did not send players to the 2018 Games in PyeongChang, South Korea, because of a contractual dispute.
9Earlier this week, the NHL decided to temporarily stop playing games until after the Christmas holiday to stop the spread of the virus.
10The league is also bringing back more COVID-19 safety policies, like daily testing and limits on the size of player gatherings.
11The league had until January 10 to withdraw from the games without paying a financial penalty.
12As a result, the men's Olympic hockey tournament will continue without NHL players for the second straight time.
13The NHL did not participate in the Olympics until 1998.
14NHL players played in five Olympics in a row through Sochi in 2014.
15During labor negotiations last year, the NHL and players' union agreed to participate in the 2022 Olympics.
16But the deal was dependent on pandemic conditions not worsening.
17A generation of hockey stars, including Swede Victor Hedman, will need to wait until 2026 to play in the Olympic men's hockey tournament for the first time.
18"It's a thing you've been looking forward to for a very long time," Hedman said.
19"For us to not be able to go, it's going to hurt for a while."
20The NHL was set to participate in the Olympics until the Delta and Omicron variants began spreading in North America.
21Before an outbreak in Calgary, Alberta, in early December, only five NHL games needed to be rescheduled.
22Several NHL players had expressed concern about going to the Games.
23Las Vegas player Robin Lehner withdrew his name to represent Sweden out of mental health concerns.
24Canadian Connor McDavid said the possible five-week quarantine requirement was "unsettling."
25"I'm still a guy that's wanting to go play in the Olympics," McDavid said.
26"But we also want to make sure it's safe for everybody. For all the athletes, not just for hockey players."
27I'm Dan Novak.
1The National Hockey League, or NHL, says it will not send players to the Olympic Games in China because of COVID-19 concerns. 2NHL chief Gary Bettman made the announcement Wednesday following a sudden, sharp rise in cases of the disease among players. At least 50 professional hockey matches have been postponed as a result. 3The 16 days of winter sports competition begins in Beijing on February 4. The NHL says it will use that period to play the regular season games it had to postpone. 4"Our focus and goal have been and must remain to responsibly and safely complete the entirety of the NHL regular season and Stanley Cup playoffs in a timely manner." 5This will be the second straight Olympic season the NHL will miss. It did not send players to the 2018 Games in PyeongChang, South Korea, because of a contractual dispute. 6Earlier this week, the NHL decided to temporarily stop playing games until after the Christmas holiday to stop the spread of the virus. The league is also bringing back more COVID-19 safety policies, like daily testing and limits on the size of player gatherings. 7The league had until January 10 to withdraw from the games without paying a financial penalty. As a result, the men's Olympic hockey tournament will continue without NHL players for the second straight time. 8The NHL did not participate in the Olympics until 1998. NHL players played in five Olympics in a row through Sochi in 2014. 9During labor negotiations last year, the NHL and players' union agreed to participate in the 2022 Olympics. But the deal was dependent on pandemic conditions not worsening. 10A generation of hockey stars, including Swede Victor Hedman, will need to wait until 2026 to play in the Olympic men's hockey tournament for the first time. 11"It's a thing you've been looking forward to for a very long time," Hedman said. "For us to not be able to go, it's going to hurt for a while." 12The NHL was set to participate in the Olympics until the Delta and Omicron variants began spreading in North America. Before an outbreak in Calgary, Alberta, in early December, only five NHL games needed to be rescheduled. 13Several NHL players had expressed concern about going to the Games. Las Vegas player Robin Lehner withdrew his name to represent Sweden out of mental health concerns. 14Canadian Connor McDavid said the possible five-week quarantine requirement was "unsettling." 15"I'm still a guy that's wanting to go play in the Olympics," McDavid said. "But we also want to make sure it's safe for everybody. For all the athletes, not just for hockey players." 16I'm Dan Novak. 17The Associated Press reported this story. Dan Novak adapted it for VOA Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor. 18_________________________________________ 19Words in This Story 20regular - adj. happening over and over again at the same time or in the same way 21manner - n. the way that something is done or happens 22tournament- n. a sports competition or series of contests that involves many players or teams and that usually continues for at least several days 23athlete- n. a person who is trained in or good at sports, games, or exercises that require physical skill and strength