Former U.N. chief Ban likely to attend Beijing Olympics

BEIJING, Dec. 5 (Yonhap) -- Former U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is expected to attend the Beijing Winter Olympics slated for February as the chair of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Ethics Commission, his aide said Sunday. Ban expressed his willingness to attend the 2022 Winter Games during an interview with Chinese media, which took place before U.S. President Joe Biden said last month Washington was considering a diplomatic boycott of the Games, according to the aide. "It is a matter of course for the chair of the IOC ethics commission, not a representative of a country, to attend the Beijing Olympics and an IOC meeting that takes place on the occasion of the Olympics," the aide told Yonhap News Agency. Chinese media earlier quoted Ban as saying he received an invitation to the Olympics and he intends to attend the Games. In July, Ban was re-elected for a four-year term as the chair of the IOC Ethics Commission, a position he has held since 2017. (END)