Rich celebrations highlight legacy of Winter Games
Aseries of activities have been organized in Beijing and Hebei province’s Zhangjiakou, two host cities of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, in February and March to celebrate the first anniversary of the global sporting event. All venues for the Games are open to the public during the period, officials said.
On Feb 4, the opening ceremony of the commemorative series was held at Shougang Ice Hockey Arena in the Chinese capital.
International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach delivered a video message at the ceremony, saying that “China can look back with great pride into the past and with even greater confidence in the future”.
The Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games have set new standards in many areas, such as innovating green technologies, popularizing healthy and positive lifestyles, and developing the ice and snow sports industry, Bach said.
“The Olympic community in China demonstrated our new Olympic motto at its best: Faster, Higher, Stronger, Together,” he added.
The sentiment was echoed by Beijing Mayor Yin Yong. “The legacy of the Winter Olympics is being transformed into a powerful driving force for the development of the Chinese capital in the new era,” Yin said. “We will vigorously carry forward the spirit of the Games and give full play to the unique advantages of Beijing as the first city ever to host both the Summer and Winter Games. Beijing will adhere to openness and innovation, deepen international exchanges and cooperation, and strive to build a world- class harmonious and livable city.”
During the opening ceremony, the Beijing Olympic Museum unveiled a new logo, which uses red, blue and green ribbons to form the shape of the Olympic flame.
The museum, which is located inside the National Stadium, also known as the Bird’s Nest, boasts 41,262 square yards of multimedia exhibition areas and showcases the history, sporting culture and Olympic legacy of Beijing. It joined the global Olympic Museums Network as its 33rd member in 2022. Angelita Teo, director of the Olympic Foundation for Culture and Heritage, said Beijing has a unique position in advocating the Olympic spirit and passing on the legacy of the 2008 and 2022 Olympic Games.
Other activities to mark the first anniversary of the Games include winter sports carnivals, markets featuring the Olympic culture, a celebration of the Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympics, and an education of the Olympic spirit in some primary and secondary schools in Beijing.
For example, eight themed ice and snow sports competitions were scheduled, including curling, skiing, marathon, cycling and an ice hockey event for the youth aged from 8 to 14.
Statistics from the General Administration of Sport showed that the world’s second- largest economy had built 654 standard ice rinks by the beginning of 2021, up 317% compared with 2015, and 803 indoor and outdoor ski resorts, up 41% from the 2015 figure.
Driven by the Olympic Agenda 2020 and Olympic Agenda 2020+ 5, the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics managed to spur a remarkable winter sports boom. Some 346 million Chinese engaged in various ice and snow activities between 2015- 22, bringing lasting and extensive social and economic benefits, said an article published on the International Olympic Committee’s official website.
“One year on, the most outstanding feature of these Games is the way they touched the lives of millions of local people by helping them discover the world of winter sports,” said the IOC’s Olympic Games Executive Director Christophe Dubi.
Moreover, a report from the China Tourism Academy said the country’s winter leisure tourism sector is expected to receive more than 520 million visitors during the 2024- 25 snow season and the related revenue could reach 720 billion yuan ($ 106.3 billion).
In February, the Beijing 2022 Organizing Committee released a post- Games sustainability report, elaborating on their commitment to protecting ecosystems, addressing climate change, promoting regional development and enhancing people’s well- being.