Sole Olympics 2022 Athlete From Arizona Plays Ice Hockey

ARIZONA — With COVID-19 protocols restricting spectators to a select few in the 2022 Beijing Olympics starting Friday, the only way to cheer on the sole athlete in the Winter Olympics from Arizona is from home.

The Olympic schedule shows competition beginning Wednesday, ahead of Friday’s opening ceremony.

While Arizona had a big showing in the last summer olympics, for obvious reasons it's a less popular training destination and place of origin for athletes in the winter games.

The only athlete with ties to Arizona representing the United States in the Feb. 4-20 XXIV Olympiad is:

• Matt Knies, 19, is a member of the U.S. men's ice hockey team who was born and raised in Phoenix. The team is set to play its first game in the preliminaries against China at 6:10 a.m. Mountain Time on Feb. 10.

As a child, Knies played for the Phoenix Jr. Coyotes, according to his Team USA profile. He went on to play for the U.S. Hockey League's Tri-City Storm, based in Kearney, Nebraska from 2018-2021. He's playing for the University of Minnesota in the 2021-22 season, where he'd scored the second-most points on the team as of Jan. 30.

He made the 2020 All-USHL Rookie Team and was selected in the second round of the 2021 National Hockey League draft by the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The Beijing Games are the second Olympics competition to be held during the coronavirus pandemic. The 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics were delayed until 2021, and athletes in Beijing will face similarly rigid protocols, as COVID-19 numbers remain high around the world.

Olympic organizers in mid-January suspended ticket sales to the general public, saying that selected groups of spectators would be invited on-site. International spectators cannot attend.

How To Watch The Olympics

NBCUniversal is the main broadcast partner and will offer 2022 Beijing Olympics programming across its cable, broadcast and digital platforms, including NBC, USA, CNBC and the Olympic Channel.

But what if you’ve cut the cord on cable? People with basic cable packages that include access to NBC can watch livestream coverage with the NBC Sports app.

Here are some other options:

• SlingTV’s Blue Plan includes access to channels broadcasting live Olympic coverage.
• Sling is offering a free trial of its Blue Plan, which includes access to channels broadcasting live Olympics coverage.
• fuboTV offers Olympic livestreams;
• Hulu + Live TV gives you access on TVs, tablets, laptops and other devices.
• NBCUniversal’s streaming service, Peacock, offers livestreaming via laptops, smartphones and smart TVs.

The Olympic athletes face a number of hurdles under a COVID-19 safety plan that includes daily testing of both athletes and workers. A positive test could sideline athletes, even if they’re no longer contagious, but Olympic organizers say the plan is flexible and allows for a case-by-case review on the need for isolation.