2022 Games boost partnership between Hebei, Austria's Tyrol

The Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, which further sparked enthusiasm for winter sports in China, will deepen cooperation between the country's Hebei province and Austria's Tyrol region, said a senior Austrian official.

Hebei, together with Beijing, hosted the recently concluded Winter Games, and Tyrol's capital, Innsbruck, has twice hosted the Winter Olympics.

Guenther Platter, the governor of Tyrol, said that "the common denominator between our regions and the original reason for the cooperation is winter sports".

"Both of us have now hosted Olympic Games, and we know we both have winter sports at heart. That is an excellent basis," he added.

"We see the cooperation going far beyond these borders in the future," Platter said. "It will not stop us from also exchanging ideas on topics in the field of mobility, sustainable energies or digital solutions for a healthy society and a circular economy. We are very excited about what the future holds."

A partnership agreement was signed between Hebei and Tyrol last summer in a move to intensify their economic, scientific and cultural relations.

Chongli district in Zhangjiakou, Hebei, staged most of the skiing events during the Winter Olympics in February. Innsbruck first hosted the Winter Olympics in 1964, establishing the region's reputation as a key Alpine destination. The city was chosen to host the 1976 Winter Games after Denver, the original host city in the United States, withdrew at short notice.

Platter, who also served as the country's interior minister and minister of defense in the 2000s, said: "For winter sports in all its dimensions, hosting the Olympic Games in these times was important and very gratifying. It is nice that the athletes, their careers and all the helpers could feel safe during the Games with regard to the COVID-19 pandemic."

He also congratulated the Chinese athletes on their excellent performance at Beijing 2022. The Chinese team won a record number of nine gold medals, four silvers and two bronzes at the Games, ranking third behind Norway and Germany, and one spot ahead of the US.

Since Beijing's successful bid in 2015, a great number of skiing facilities were built throughout the country, even in places where there is no natural snow, allowing more ordinary people to access the slopes.

A total of 770 ski resorts nationwide were in operation in China in 2019, one-third of which had opened in the previous five years, and this number is expected to reach 1,000 in the next few years.

Platter said: "The numerous ski resorts that have sprung up in recent years, especially in Hebei, are a testament to the developments in this area. It's a great opportunity for young people in Beijing and Hebei, but also throughout China, to get in touch with new sports very easily and try their hand at ski jumping, tobogganing or, of course, skiing, for example."

But he added that it will require a lot more to become a successful and popular winter sports destination, and a holistic approach in this regard is needed.

"It is important that major winter sports events take place regularly in Tyrol to fuel the dreams and enthusiasm for these sports. At the same time, it is important that everything happens in harmony with the social and natural environment. In the long run, it is important that the population itself enjoys and participates in winter sports.

"It has always been our most important goal that we provide this infrastructure not only for the guests, but equally for our own people," Platter said.

"In addition, it is important to think about the whole year－including the summer. Our infrastructure must be oriented in such a way that it remains functional throughout the year and does not only serve skiing. That's how it can work."

Tyrol is where Alpine skiing was invented over 130 years ago. Platter said it is no coincidence that before the pandemic, more than 6 million people from all over the world came to ski in Tyrol each winter.

With Chinese showing significant interest in winter sports, largely inspired by the Winter Olympics, Platter said he is confident the region will be able to welcome more Chinese arrivals once COVID-19 travel restrictions are lifted.