Mr Wan Xuejun, Deputy Director General of International Relations Department, Beijing Organising Committee for the 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games，
Mr. Himadrish Suwan, Chairman of the Confederation of Young Leaders of India,
Friends,
Good morning!
At the beginning of 2022, the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games entered “Beijing Time”. On February 4th, the Olympic Flame will be lit for a second time in Beijing after 14 years, we will witness this ancient city with thousands-year history to be the first “Dual Olympic City” in the world. After 6 years of efforts, preparations are basically all set. The 3 competition zones, namely the one in Beijing municipal city as Beijing Competition Zone, the one in Yanqing district of Beijing’s suburban as Yanqing Competition Zone,and the one in Zhang Jiakou city of Hebei Province as Zhang Jiaqkou Competition Zone, are filled with tastes of Winter Games. Ice Ribbon (National Speed Skating Oval), Ice Cube(The National Aquatics Centre), Snow (Chinese National Alpine Skiing Centre) and Snow Ruyi (National Ski Jumping Center, where the center’s S-type curve resembles the shape of a jade Ruyi scepter, a traditional Chinese ceremonial object) and all 12 venues will warmly welcome athletes from all over the world with high quality, good environment and considerate logistical support.
Winter sports have a long history and a broad mass base in China. During the Qianlong reign of the Qing Dynasty in the 18th century, ice-playing sport was officially designated as “annual national custom”. I still remember that in the 1980s, when I was a university student in Beijing, I went to the park to learn ice skating, and there were many ice sports enthusiasts of all ages around me. Entering the 21st century, the Chinese government promised of “involving 300 million people in winter sports” through bidding and preparations for the Beijing Winter Games, this goal has now been achieved ahead of schedule. Not long ago, the skiing video of one Chinese kid went viral on social media, which shows winter sports have grown on Chinese people. How amazing!
When talking about the 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, the most conspicuous symbols are the vivid emblems, which are inspired by the Chinese character for “winter” as冬and “flying” as飞 respectively. Character 冬 appeared in oracle bone inscriptions more than 4,000 years ago, which means “entering the cold season”. Today, the two dots under it represent “ice”. In this way, the emblems integrate the charm of form and meaning, resembles a skater and a skier rushing towards the finish line and victory. 飞 also vividly evokes the image of an athlete in a wheelchair. The flowing ribbon-like motif symbolises the rolling mountains, Olympic venues, ski pistes and floating festival ribbons. It also points to the fact that the Games will coincide with the Chinese New Year. Both emblems combine traditional and modern elements of Chinese culture, as well as features embodying the passion and vitality of winter sports, and the resilient spirit of participating athletes striving for excellence.
The most popular mascots for the Beijing Winter Games are “Bing Dwen Dwen” and “Shuey Rhon Rhon”. Let’s watch two video clips. Bing Dwen Dwen is inspired by Chinese national treasure panda. It wears a full-body “shell” which resembles the helmets commonly used in winter sports. “Dwen Dwen” in Chinese means honest, robust and lively. Shuey Rhon Rhon is inspired by Chinese lantern,which is a millennia-old cultural symbol. The first Rhon in the mascot’s Chinese name means ‘to include, to tolerate’, while the second Rhon means ‘to melt, to fuse’ and ‘warm’. The name expresses the well wish that there could be more inclusion for people with impairments more dialogue and understanding between cultures of the world.
The most shining symbols for the Beijing Winter Games are the Olympic torches. The Olympic torch is made of red and silver as primary colours which are metaphors of ice and fire, meant to symbolise how the torch will bring “light and warmth to the world of ice and snow”. The Paralympic torch is featured of gold and silver meant for brilliance and dreams. As the torch turns, the whirling red line hidden in the crack seems to stretch endlessly, resembles the vigorous tracks of winter sports, representing mankind’s relentless pursuit of brightness, peace, excellence and the values promoted by the Olympic Movement. After 24 days, the main torch of the Winter Olympics will be lit at the National Stadium, the “Bird’s Nest”, let’s wait and see what kind of creativity there will be in the opening ceremony.
Friends,
The principles of hosting the 2022 Beijing Winter Games are featured with “green, inclusive, open and clean”. I would like to elaborate in three aspects:
The first aspect is about being “green” and “eco-friendly”. The idea of a green Beijing 2022 is presented all through the process of preparation and hosting of the Olympic Games. Literally speaking, the aim is to create wooded competition zones: in Beijing, the city’s overall forest coverage rate has reached 44.4 percent, the forested area in Zhangjiakou has increased to more than 18,000 square kilometers, and there are 24,000 trees transplanted to an “Olympic forest” in Yanqing Winter Olympic village. All three Winter Olympic villages in Beijing, Yanqing and Zhangjiakou meet the three-star green building standard. All 12 Olympic venues will be powered entirely by green and renewable energy for the first time in the world. As for low carbon technology, the National Speed Skating Oval (Ice Ribbon) has introduced carbon dioxide refrigerants for ice-making,and it will be the first in Olympic history where such technology is applied in large scale with near-zero carbon emissions. In outdoors snow-making, water will be stored via multiple channels, recycled and conserved with technological support. This will meet the need for snow-making during the Olympics without affecting local water security or ecological environment. The Beijing Olympics combine the promotion of sports with ecological conservation so that people can enjoy the charm of winter sports while protecting the beauty of Nature and the ecology.
The second aspect is about being “streamlined” and “clean”. Beijing Winter Games adopt multiple innovative measures to keep strict budget management and cost control, in order to ensure streamlined, splendid but not shabby Games. From the view of streamlining the Games, except for the National Speed Skating Oval (Ice Ribbon), all ice sport events will take place in renovated venues built for the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics. In this way, all these venues can be used for both summer and winter sports in the future. By doing so, we solve the problem of using the venues after the Games. The “borrowing” of urban infrastructure to serve the Beijing Winter Games, and continuing to serve the city after the game, has become another innovation in Beijing’s streamlined hosting of the Olympics. For example, the second phase project of the China National Convention Center was used as the Main Media Center of the Winter Games during the competition, and it will return to the original exhibition function after the competition. From the view of hosting “clean” Games, we adopt zero-tolerance towards doping and acts in violation of sportsmanship, all in an effort to make the incoming Olympics in Beijing as clean and pure as ice and snow, and a sporting event full of passion.
The third aspect is about being “healthy” and “safe”. The health and life safety of athletes and other participants are highest on our agenda of guarantee of the Winter Games. Facing the challenge posed by the pandemic, especially the Omicron variant, the Chinese Government has put the people front and center. We make every effort to ensure safety of the people, put epidemic prevention and control in the first place, and formulate science-based and targeted epidemic prevention policies. Few days earlier, the IOC and the Beijing Organising Committee have published the second edition of the Beijing 2022 Playbook. This is the guidance book for safe and successful games. We will take necessary measures such as remote prevention and control, closed-loop management and vaccination, to realize targeted measures of customs entry, health inspection, and close contact management, etc.. We will make every effort to create a healthy and safe environment and good experience for all participants.
Friends,
In the Olympic Charter, the Olympic spirit embodies as “mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play”. Last July, the International Olympic Committee approved the addition of the word “together”, after an en dash, to the motto, which now reads as “Faster, Higher, Stronger – Together”. This is highly consistent with the concept of building a community with a shared future for mankind proposed by President Xi Jinping. In the Chinese translation, “together” carries a further meaning of unity and solidarity. The Olympic Games is a platform for athletes to shine, an event for all people of different countries,races,and cultures to compete with and to help each other become “faster, higher, stronger, together”. In comparison, politicization of the Olympics by certain countries and few politicians completely violates and discredits the Olympic spirit, which is unavailing. The overwhelming majority of the international community support and expect a successful Beijing Winter Games. Not long ago, the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly adopted by consensus the resolution on Olympic Truce for the Beijing Winter Games. Important documents of multilateral mechanisms such as the BRICS summit and the SCO summit, and the Joint Communique of the 18th Meeting of the foreign ministers of Russia-India-China, all explicitly stated support for the Beijing Winter Games.
“Together for a Shared Future” is the motto of the 2022 Beijing Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. It is also China’s attitude, initiative and more of an action plan to practice the new Olympic motto. We firmly believe that all of us should work hand in hand, stand together and help each other. All of us should uphold the goal of pursuing unity, peace, progress and tolerance to build a community with a shared future for mankind. Only in this way, can we jointly cope with major challenges as COVID-19 pandemic and climate change, and together we can go for a wonderful future.
Friends,
President Xi Jinping stressed that it is China’s solemn pledge to ensure the Beijing Winter Olympics and Paralympics are “a full success”. We are confident and capable of delivering a splendid, exceptional and extraordinary Olympic event for the world. Athletes from all around the world are welcome to compete in the Beijing Winter Games. We will ensure the safety and convenience of all athletes and provide support to each and every one in the pursuit of their Olympic dreams. Let’s look forward to the wonderful performance of the athletes, hope that they will be able to excel themselves in the Beijing Winter Games. Let’s wish all countries in the world to join hands to ignite the flame of hope for mankind and protect the light of common destiny inheriting the Olympic spirit, and “together for a shared future”.
Year 2022, Beijing welcomes you all.
Thank you!
Chinese Ambassador to India Sun Weidong Photo: Chinese Embassy in India
