A boy celebrates Beijing’swinning the bid to host the 2022Winter Olympics in Tian’anmenSquare

 

Beijing was awarded the Winter Olympic Games 2022 on July 31, making the Chinese capital the first city in the world to host both the summer and winter games. China’s experience as the host of the 2008 Summer Games, Paralympics and the 2014 Youth Olympic Games has earned it a vote of confidence from global media.

As CNN put it, “Beijing has already proved its worth as a successful Olympic host, having hosted the summer version of the Games in 2008.”

Paris Match made a similar comment that Beijing held an unparalleled Olympics in 2008, which will without doubt facilitate it to launch the 2022 Games.

According to AFP, its experience in mounting a series of Olympic events, outstanding organizational and executive capabilities, and ambitious proposal were the keys to Beijing’s victory over its Kazakh rival Almaty.

Le Figaro quoted Thomas Bach, president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), who said: “Given China’s rich experience in organizing large-scale events, it really is a safe choice. We know China will deliver on its promises.”
 

The selection of South Korea, Japan and China as the hosts for the next three Olympic Games is reflective of the shift in IOC’s focus from Europe to Asia and its endeavor to go global, Bach said.
 

Citing the stable political and economic situation in China, some media and experts added that Beijing, as a first-rate travel destination with sound facilities, can accommodate the multitudes of tourists brought by the Games.

Unlike the countries that withdrew bids for the Games out of financial concerns, “China doesn’t have to worry,” said Susan Brownell, a professor from Heidelberg University in Germany.

Li Chenghua, vice-president of the Nanjing Academy of Social Sciences, summarized the general opinion on the Games, saying that through the staging of previous Olympic events, China has demonstrated remarkably strong abilities in terms of governmental organization, social mobilization and event services as well as sustainable and green development, which have earned the confidence of the IOC.
 

In the Host City Contract, Beijing also stresses that it aims to use the Games to accelerate the development of a new sport, culture and tourism area, and to encourage interest in winter sports in northern China which is home to more than 300 million people.
 

However, there are difficulties in holding the event in three different places—Beijing, suburban Yanqing County and Zhangjiakou in Hebei Province. Li underscored the necessity of building a coordination mechanism to tackle such problems as event protection and volunteer services. Meanwhile, attention should be paid to environmental issues and problems caused by the separation of residences for athletes and competition venues, which will require coordination and timely solutions, Li said. 

 

 

Yao Xiaodan is a reporter at the Chinese Social Sciences Today.