Though it wasn’t mentioned, it seems that aside from the fact that Beijing has a good track record of hosting the Summer Games in 2008, other external factors were also taken into consideration. “More than half of our country experiences temperatures below freezing”, he added. The decision came down in a vote by the worldwide Olympic Committee.
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Apart from the obvious effect of the Winter Olympics in Beijing tourism industry, residents of China’s capital are excited over the changes in terms of environmental protection in the city, according to Xinhuanet.
Just five weeks ago, Paris, which last hosted the Olympics in 1924, officially announced to bid for the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
We got a lot of help from London and Beijing.
“It was a very hard decision to make”, IOC President Thomas Bach said.
Practically snowless Beijing was yesterday chosen to host the 2022 Winter Olympics, becoming the first city to be awarded both summer and winter Games.
Tibetan activists have been particularly incensed by Beijing’s bid for the Games.
The city government’s official Beijing Daily said that the Games had already spurred efforts to clean up the environment, and that Beijing and Zhangjiakou would not disappoint the world.
“It admitted that when Beijing hosted the 2008 Summer Games, “many Chinese people were nervous that they might mess up the event”. Beijing Mayor Wang Anshun told the IOC in Kuala Lumpur that his administration was trying to reduce air pollution.
“Thanks to an additional contribution from the IOC of approximately 880 million US dollars to support the staging of the Olympic Winter Games in 2022, Beijing is confident that it will either break even or make a profit”.
Almaty’s candidacy slogan – “Keeping it real” – was a not-so-subtle jibe at Beijing’s need for fake snow and its lack of a winter-sports tradition.
IOC director general Christophe De Kepper said there were doubts about the “integrity” of the results given by the tablets used for the vote.
Hong Kong’s special athletic association executive member Ye Xihuo said: “As a Chinese, I feel very proud (that my country will hold the 2022 Winter Olympics)”.
“Let me assure you that if you choose Beijing, the Chinese people will present to the world a fantastic, extraordinary and excellent Olympic Winter Games“, Xi said.
A planned high-speed rail line to Zhangjiakou will supposedly cut travel time to 50 minutes.
China claims Tibet has been part of its territory for centuries, but Tibetans say the Himalayan region was virtually independent until China occupied it in 1950.
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The Youth Olympics are restricted to athletes aged between 14-18, and 2020 will be the third edition of the initiative from former IOC president Jacques Rogge to encourage more young people to stay in sport.
