Making the most of the Olympic experience at Beijing 2022

By signing up to Athlete365, the IOC’s official athlete community, Beijing 2022 athletes gain access to a range of exclusive Olympian services geared towards helping them make the most their Olympic experience. 

These include innovative tools designed to bring fans, friends and family closer to the action so that they can experience the Games with the athletes.

Connecting with families and friends, plus fans around the world

Athlete Moment, which proved so popular when piloted at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, is being rolled out by Olympic Broadcasting Services (OBS) across all winter sports at Beijing 2022, enabling athletes to connect with loved ones back home immediately after their competition. All they need to do is fill in a simple online form specifying who from their entourage they want on the other end of the screen, and the Athlete365 team takes care of the logistics.

Meanwhile, Athlete365 Connect allows athletes to receive free, high-resolution Getty Images of themselves competing on the field of play at Beijing 2022 and behind the scenes, ready to instantly share to their social media channels, potentially reaching new followers. They will continue to have access to the images after the Games too, so that they can celebrate Beijing 2022 and grow their personal brand in the weeks following the Closing Ceremony.

When they have finished competing, athletes can also sign up to the Airbnb500 Travel Grant. Delivered in partnership with TOP Partner Airbnb, each Beijing 2022 Olympian and Paralympian who signs up through the online form will receive an Airbnb credit worth USD 500 to spend on unwinding after the Games or going after their next goal – or both.

Olympic Village services

These online offers complement the services being delivered to athletes across the three Olympic Villages in Beijing, Yanqing and Zhangjiakou, all of which have the necessary COVID-19 countermeasures in place.

“The Beijing Olympic Village is the largest non-competition venue of the Games and has been designed to best meet the needs of the competing athletes”, said SHEN Qianfan, Director-General of the Beijing 2022 Olympic Village. “With its comfortable appartements and 2,300 beds, its 2200 square meters dining hall operating 24 hours, its fitness and entertainment areas, the Village provides all the necessary services, including medical and psychological assistance, to all athletes to perform at their best and enjoy their time in Beijing”.

Each Olympic Village has an Athlete365 Space, where athletes can find out more about the Games-time offers, and the support available to them through Athlete365 in areas such as career transition and mental health. The Athlete365 Space is also the place where athletes can cast their vote in the election for their next two representatives on the IOC Athletes’ Commission.

All Olympians in Beijing also received a Olympic Edition Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 phone. Pre-installed on each phone is the PinQuest app, an interactive and educational game which returns after successfully connecting athletes in a virtual environment at Tokyo 2020. With personal interactions again kept to a minimum at Beijing 2022 to protect the health of all athletes, PinQuest invites players to test their Olympic knowledge, challenge each other in the quiz arena, and win a collection of eight limited-edition Olympic pins.

Many of the usual Olympic Village activities are in place to keep athletes relaxed and entertained, with table tennis already proving extremely popular in Beijing; and the conditions in the Villages have drawn praise from athletes.

“I think [Beijing 2022] have done an amazing job with the whole set-up,” said British moguls skier Leonie Gerken-Schofield. “There are a lot of things you can do – obviously you have to be careful with COVID, but I think the set-up is incredible and it’s a dream come true.”

Mental health support available to all athletes

With health and safety a key component of Games-time operations, medical services are also available in each Village within the Polyclinics, staffed by healthcare professionals and offering free acupuncture, physiotherapy and cold baths.

The IOC takes its duty of care to athletes very seriously, and within each Polyclinic there is an IOC Safe Sport office offering educational materials and resources on both safeguarding athletes from harassment and abuse in sport, and on the IOC’s #MentallyFit campaign.

With the Beijing 2022 Games well underway, the IOC and the IOC Athletes’ Commission are emphasising the need to support athletes’ well-being, and are highlighting the importance of protecting their mental health.

Members of the IOC Athletes’ Commission have reached out proactively to athletes with the greatest needs and been in touch with those who have been affected by COVID-19 and experienced temporary isolation.

For Beijing 2022, just as there was for Tokyo 2020, there is a Mental Health Helpline in place for confidential mental health support for all athletes and entourage members. Staffed by expert counsellors who can provide help, advice and support in over 70 languages, the helpline offers 24-hour support, structured short-term counselling, practical support and, if needed, guidance on the appropriate IOC reporting mechanisms in the event of harassment and/or abuse.

The service is free to use, and can be accessed via phone, email, instant messaging or the iConnectYou app. In addition, athletes who register with the helpline during the Games will benefit from six structured short-term counselling sessions providing on-the-spot clinical support for up to three months after competition.

Find out more about the IOC’s work in supporting athletes’ mental health on and off the field of play.