On-site spectators will be missing Friday as athletes parade in Beijing for the XXIV Olympic Winter Games opening ceremonies. There will be pandemic-inspired protocols in place, extending through the competitions – similar to the ones adopted at the most recent Summer Games in Tokyo. And there's a diplomatic boycott in place as well, with the United States, Britain, Canada and Australia opting not to send government officials to the Games, in a show of protest against human rights violations in China. (Athletes from those countries will still compete.)