Venue for the 2022 winter Olympics has been announced earlier today and it’s the city of Beijing to host the event. With that Beijing becomes the first city to host both summer(2008) and winter Olympics(2022).
Beijing and Almaty were bidding for a place to host the event and eventually it was Beijing who come out on top after two years.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) said that Beijing was awarded the Games because it fitted its new agenda for a “stronger focus on sustainability, legacy, and transparency”.
Despite expected costs of up to £962m ($1.5bn), the IOC said: “Beijing will rely heavily on existing venues, including those built for the Games in 2008, such as the iconic Bird’s Nest stadium.”
The statement added: “Thanks to an additional contribution from the IOC of approximately £564m ($880m) to support the staging of the Olympic Winter Games in 2022, Beijing is confident that it will either break even or make a profit.”
Despite concerns about a lack of natural snow in the mountains, and protests from human rights groups, Beijing had been the clear favourite to win the vote after it successfully hosted the 2008 Summer Olympics.
The IOC said in a statement: “Beijing 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 a region that is home to more than 300 million people in northern China.”
But Human Rights Watch said the decision was “a slap in the face to China’s besieged human rights activists”.
Sophie Richardson, China director of the pressure group, added: “The Olympic motto of ‘higher, faster, and stronger’ is a perfect description of the Chinese government’s assault on civil society: more peaceful activists detained in record time, subject to far harsher treatment.”
“The venues need to be technically excellent. They need to be Olympic standard for you to bring good performances as athletes. I really hope the IOC will make sure that things are ready for the World Cup races that will have to take place there before the Olympics.” Said Lizzie Yarnold former Olympic Skeleton champion.