A survey showed that two-thirds of South Koreans have no interest in the Beijing Winter Olympics which kick off on February 4.
Gallup Korea polled over a thousand adults from Tuesday to Thursday and 65 percent said they were not interested in the Games. Only 32 percent showed interest, while three percent didn’t answer.
This compares to 71 percent of respondents saying they were interested in the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics four years ago.
When compared to other polls held before previous Olympic Games from 1992, this year’s results showed one of the lowest levels of interest. For instance, there was 59 percent interest for the 2012 London Games and 60 percent for the 2016 Rio Games.
Gallup said the level of apathy for Beijing is similar to that of the 2020 Tokyo Summer Games. The 2022 Games are the second Olympics held amid the pandemic and will also not allow any spectators.
The poll has a 95 percent confidence level with a margin of error of plus or minus three-point-one percentage points.