Some 50 foreign athletes scheduled to take part in the Beijing Winter Games have tested positive for the coronavirus either before departing for China or upon their arrival in the country.

NHK tallied up announcements by national sporting associations and online posts by Olympians. As of Tuesday, 53 athletes from 12 countries and the Russian Olympic Committee were confirmed positive for COVID-19.

Nine of them have been deprived of the opportunity to compete in the Games. They include a snowboarder from Slovenia and members of Sweden's ice hockey team.

That comes after medal-favorite Austrian ski jumper Marita Kramer was removed from the Olympic entry list after becoming infected with the virus.

More than 20 athletes are under isolation either in China or at home. They include a Japanese skier who tested positive after arrival.

The playbook says that athletes will be discharged from isolation if they have two consecutive negative PCR test results with a sample interval of at least 24 hours.