In Beijing, Olympic ideals coexist with authoritarian rule

The Chinese national flag is raised during the opening ceremony of the 2022 Winter Olympics, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022, in Beijing. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

The Chinese and Olympic flags fly during the opening ceremony of the 2022 Winter Olympics, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022, in Beijing. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

IOC President Thomas Bach, left, passes on the Olympic flame to Abdulla Shahid, President of UN General Assembly at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022, in Beijing. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

President of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach, speaks during the opening ceremony of the 2022 Winter Olympics, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022, in Beijing. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

FILE - In this photo released by China's Xinhua News Agency, International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach, left, and Chinese President Xi Jinping meet at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2022. The last time the Olympics came to China, Xi Jinping oversaw the whole endeavor. Now the Games are back, and he is running the entire nation. The Chinese president, hosting a Winter Olympics beleaguered by complaints about human rights abuses, has upended tradition to restore strongman rule in China and tighten Communist Party control over the economy and society. (Yao Dawei/Xinhua via AP, File)

Chinese President Xi Jinping, center, and International Olympic Committee's President Thomas Bach applaud during the opening ceremony of the 2022 Winter Olympics, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022, in Beijing. (Anthony Wallace/Pool Photo via AP)