BEIJING -- China's targeted and effective COVID-19 prevention and control efforts have ensured the safe and smooth hosting of Beijing Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, President Xi Jinping said Friday.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks at a gathering in Beijing on Friday morning to honor those who have made outstanding contributions to the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games and the Beijing 2022 Paralympic Winter Games.

Against the background of the COVID-19 pandemic that rages across the world, we have put first the health of all participants, adhered to the policy of preventing the coronavirus from re-entering the country to cause a new epidemic, and strictly implemented the prevention and control measures, Xi said.

During the Games, only 0.45 percent of personnel under closed-loop management tested positive for COVID-19. And all of them received effective treatment and were well cared for. No cluster of infections or spillover cases occurred and dynamic zero-COVID was maintained in cities, Xi noted.

He added that China's anti-COVID policy has once again withstood the test, contributing useful experience for the world to fight against the virus and host major international events.

"As some foreign athletes have said, if there was a gold medal for responding to the pandemic, then China deserves it," Xi said.