Account
Beijing Wins Right to Host 2022 Winter Olympics: Latest Details and Reaction
July 31, 2015
Beijing will follow its 2008 Olympic legacy by hosting the 2022 Winter Olympics, as reported by Dan Roan of BBC Sport.
The Chinese capital will be the first city to host both the Summer and Winter Games after beating the Kazakh city of Almaty to the final vote, per Tom Phillips of the Guardian.
The Paralympic Games will also take place in the Asian country after Chinese President Xi Jinping promised a "fantastic, extraordinary and excellent" showing, per Phillips. CCTV News posted the pivotal moment on YouTube:
Beijing's fate was sealed with a secret ballot at the International Olympic Committee's meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, reported Ingrid Piper of CNN. Piper noted Almaty's attempts to land the global sporting event was "punching above its weight" before the winner was announced.
However, Andrew Das of the New York Times suggested the contest was closer than expected:
Wang Anshun, Mayor of Beijing, noted the country will deliver "Games that are joyful and harmonious, Games that are safe and reliable," per Phillips.
Bloomberg Business suggested we can expect a more low-key affair than the Sochi Games in 2014:
Beijing's hosting of the 2008 Summer Olympics can be remembered for constant complaints of pollution in the smog-filled city. This atmosphere creates a stifling heat, so it will be key to the Winter Olympics that conditions are properly regulated. "All our efforts are moving Beijing towards a clean energy future," noted Anshun, per Phillips.
Xu Jicheng, deputy director of Beijing 2022's press and communications department, said competitors and crowds can look forward to "sunshine and white clouds" when the event starts, reported by Francis Eduard Ang of Yibada (h/t Piper).
Chinese officials are also prepared to deal with the lack of snowfall by expanding the use of artificial snow, as highlighted by Liu Peng, president of the Chinese Olympic Committee: "Beijing 2022 will build on its existing snow-making capability to supplement natural snowfall," reported by Phillips.
Martyn Ziegler of the Associated Press expects the Games to be defined by limited snow:
B/R UK's Graham Ruthven joked about the situation:
Oslo (Norway), Munich (Germany) and Stockholm (Sweden) dropped out of the running before Friday's announcement, per Piper. All three cities appear more suitable for the Winter Olympics on paper, but China will now have the chance to prove any doubters wrong.
Questions will always be asked of artificial snow—just like it was over artificial turf at this year's Women's World Cup—but once the Games begin, sporting success will outweigh the negative headlines.