Dutch star: If there is 1 country that can host the Winter Olympics under the current epidemic, it must be China

Kroll, a 29-year-old Dutch speed skater, said in a recent media interview that if only one country (region) can host the Winter Olympics (in the current situation), it must be China, and "we should be glad that the Winter Olympics will be held here."

Kroll from the speed skating "Dream Team" - the Netherlands team is one of the favourites to win the men's 1000m and 1500m at the Beijing Winter Olympics. On the afternoon of the 31st, in the training competition held at the National Speed Skating Hall "Ice Ribbon", which only a few runners participated in, Kroll skated a time of 1 minute 08.84 seconds in the men's 1000 meters event.

Kroll told reporters that he had been in Beijing for 4 or 5 days and participated in the training match to find the rhythm of the game. The result wasn't "so fast" and he believes he'll be in better shape next week.

Kroll expressed his appreciation for the organizational work of the Beijing Winter Olympics. He said that looking back at the past two years, we can see that the epidemic prevention measures taken by China are the best, and the number of infected people is very low. "As I said a few weeks ago, if only one country can host the Winter Olympics (in the current situation), it must be China, and we should be glad that the Winter Olympics are held here." Because all other countries encounter greater difficulties. Kroll also said that the organizing committee found a good balance between ensuring epidemic prevention safety and giving athletes a certain degree of freedom, so he appreciated the organization of the event.

At the Beijing Winter Olympics, Kroll's main events are the men's 1500m and 1000m. In these two events, China's Ning Zhongyan is also one of the most competitive players.

Kroll said that Ning Zhongyan is very good and has exchanged suits with him in the World Cup before. "I have a lot of respect for Ning Zhongyan, he is a great athlete, especially in the 1500 meters race is the favorite to win the championship, perhaps in the 1000 meters event. I'm looking forward to competing with him for gold at the Winter Olympics.

Kroll also said that in the 500-meter event, he respected China's Gao Tingyu, "his first 100 meters are really too fast." Kroll's own goal is to play at a high level in the 1500m and 1000m events, "hoping to win the gold medal".

Reporters Wang Jingyu, He Leijing, and Yue Ranran

(Xinhua News Agency)