As the Winter Olympics start in Beijing, here’s where to follow the Games

The Czech Republic is sending its largest ever team to the Winter Olympics, and the opening ceremony for the Games starts today at 13:00. So where can you catch all the action today and over the next two and a half weeks?

Unlike for the Summer Olympics last year, Praguers won’t have the chance to enjoy the Games at a special “Olympic Festival.” This year’s festival is in Brno, close to the Brno Židenice train station at Areál Nová Zbrojovka.

Admission is CZK 50 for adults and free for children under 12, disabled people and seniors over 65. The festival ground will be open 09:00-18:00 on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday, and until an hour later on Fridays and Saturdays.

The festival will provide a range of sporting opportunities for all ages, including the chance to try out curling, skiing, ice hockey and biathlon. Live streams from the Games in Beijing will also be presented.

Today, a mock opening ceremony is taking place at the festival with an “Olympic Torch” run from Brno city center to the gate of the festival. Runners include the Regional Governor of South Moravia as well as famous Czech winter sports stars. The sports venues on the grounds will be opened at 12:00, before all gather to watch the Opening Ceremony in Beijing at 13:00.

The festival is a continuation of the concept started in Prague for last year’s Tokyo Games. The Prague Olympic Festival replaced the usual erection of large screens for the public to watch the Games due to Covid concerns. The last public Winter Olympic Festival in the Czech Republic was held for the Sochi Games in 2014.

Praguers needn’t despair though, as the Games will be available to watch in their entirety on the Eurosport TV channels, while 240 selected hours of sports will be shown live on Czech Television. The events chosen for live broadcast on Czech TV will focus on participating Czech athletes as well as the finals of popular events.

Prague public transport meanwhile showed their support for the Czech team with a tweet displaying a mock route to ‘Victory Square,’ after the square in Prague’s Dejvice district.

The opening ceremony will be broadcast on ČT Sport and Eurosport 1 today. It can also be followed via online live text streams.

The ceremony won’t feature the same level of extravagance as Summer Olympics opening ceremony seen in China back in 2008, due to Covid restrictions and extreme cold temperatures. But the parade of athletes will take place, with the Czech flag to be carried by figure skater Michal Březina and women’s hockey captain Alena Mills.