Thousands gathered in central Wuhan on Saturday night to count down to the start of what many hoped would be a much better year after a “tough" 2022 filled with lockdowns and in December a major new outbreak of the coronavirus. Many released balloons into the sky when the clocks struck midnight, as per tradition in the central Chinese city where the pandemic began three years ago, before grabbing selfies with their friends. “In the past year, I feel that COVID-19 was very serious and some of my family members have been hospitalised,” 17-year-old Wuhan high school student, surnamed Wang,…