Winter sports can boost northeast region

IN A SHORT VIDEO played at the closing ceremony of the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, the Republic of South Korea, on Sunday, President Xi Jinping extended a cordial invite to the world for the Winter Olympics that Beijing and neighboring Zhangjiakou, Hebei province, will co-host in 2022. Beijing News comments:

The Chinese delegation made some breakthroughs at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. Chinese athletes took part in the ski jumping and bobsleigh and tobogganing competitions for the first time. The one gold medal China won in the men’s 500-meter short track speed skating was also the first gold medal for China in that event.

China’s young athletes also gained valuable, practical, on-the-spot experience. But apart from preparing the athletes for the next Winter Games, China should pay more attention to promoting winter sports at home and encourage more people to enjoy them.

All the countries leading the medal list in the Winter Olympics share something in common — there are not only many fans and participants of winter sports, but also strong research and industry bases, and developed winter sports markets in these countries.

If the Beijing-Zhangjiakou games can create a generation of winter sports fans and participants at home, it will put China on the right track for developing its winter sports industry, and winter sports will no longer be just for professional athletes and the wealthy.

The winter sports stadiums built for the 2022 games, and those constructed elsewhere in the country with public funds should be opened to the people at affordable price, not left in idle.

Northeast China, the cradle for most Chinese winter sports champions, deserves more support from the central government to help maintain its winter sports traditions, as the region is suffering from economic decline and population drain which are hollowing out many local winter sports clubs and organizations.