What you need to know about Beijing Olympic games 2022

Published: January 14,2022

By staff writer

China 5G high-speed train for Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics

On January 6, 2022, China launched the world’s first high-speed train with 5G coverage that will be used during the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games. The express train links Beijing and Zhangjiakou, allowing athletes, journalists and other attendees to move between venues. The China Media Group (CGM) and China Railway developed the train, which is said to be the first in the world to offer a 5G signal to ensure a stable internet connection.  

Live coverage of the Winter Olympics, scheduled to be held from February 4 to 20, is also set to be broadcast on the trains. According to the China Global Television Network, the trains will run at 350 kilometres per hour and finish a one-way journey of 170km in less than an hour. International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach reportedly sent a letter to the CGM to congratulate the organisation on the launch of the train.

The Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games (BOCOG) released a Beijing 2022 Pre-Games Sustainability Report, which highlights the level of preparation and readiness for China to host the 2022 Olympic winter games. The report notes that statistics released by the General Administration of Sport of China show that 346 million people have now participated in winter sports. This is a big number, given the fact that China is relatively new in the field of hosting winter Olympic games.

The Winter Olympic Games will feature a green and sustainable management system and boost regional development of Beijing and its co-host city Zhangjiakou, said Beijing 2022 organizers at a press conference on Thursday. Both the International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach and International Paralympic Committee (IPC) President Andrew Parsons,expressed their satisfaction of China to host the Olympic games appreciating the high level of preparedness and standards for the games. 

A low-carbon transportation system has been built to carry out carbon offsets, Li making Beijing 2022 to be carbon neutral, said Li Sen, the director general of the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games (BOCOG) General Planning Department.  Yan Jiarong, BOCOG spokesperson, also added that, “Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics is the first Games to fully implement Olympic Agenda 2020 with focus on sustainability.”

In 100 days time, starting February 4, 2022, Beijing will become the first city in the world to host both the summer and Winter Olympic Games, making it the inaugural dual Olympic city. Having hosted the Summer Games in 2008, Beijing is now gearing up to host the Winter Games, which start 4 February 2022.

To honour Beijing’s status as the world’s first city to host both the summer and Winter Olympics, the 2022 torch features a similar design to the 2008 Games’ main cauldron, which resembled a giant scroll, highlighting the Olympic spirit’s legacy in the Chinese capital, according to (olympics.com) news.

The cloud patterns covering the handle of the torch also draw inspiration from the main visual element of the 2008 torch, according to the design team. By using the same colour combination and by sharing similar artistic elements with the 2008 torch, the organisingcommittee aims to extend auspicious greetings to the world as they did at the Summer Games and to showcase Beijing’s rich Olympic culture.

The Olympic fire of Beijing 2022 was lit on 18 October, 2021 in ancient Olympia, Greece – the “Flying” torch playing an important role in the handover ceremony the following day – and which will continue to take the Olympic fire to different areas of the People’s Republic of China until the Opening Ceremony on February 4.

This is the third time China is hosting winter Olympic Games. The first was the hosting of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games; the second was the 2014 Nanjing Youth Olympics. In 2015, at the 128^thsession of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Beijing, together with its nearby Zhangjiakou City won the bid of the 2022 Winter Olympic Games.