Almaty, Beijing Amp Up Efforts in Race for 2022 Olympics

(ATR)Leaders behind the two bids for the 2022 Winter Olympics are shifting plans into high gear with two months to go until the IOC votes on a host for the Games.

Representatives from Almaty and Beijing will gather at the IOC Executive Board meeting in Lausanne, June 9-10, to present updated proposals for the 2022 Olympics.

The IOC will select a host city for the 2022 Winter Games on July 31 at the IOC Session in Kuala Lumpur.

Speaking with Franc Jeux on Tuesday, vice mayor of Beijing Zhang Jiandong said Beijing 2022 leaders are focused and confident.

"The timing of this application can not be better."

The vice mayor added, "Some 1.5 million tourists visited ski resorts in Zhangjiakou this year.

"During the past decade, about 400 ski resorts were built in the country.

"In the words of our President, Xi Jinping, the 2022 Games could 'inspire Chinese 300 million to get winter sports.'"

Beijing 2022, according to Jiandong, will draw on the legacy of the 2008 Summer Olympics in its presentation to the IOC on June 9.

Jiandongsays this also reflects the bid team's efforts to adhere to Olympic Agenda 2020 reforms focused on legacy and sustainability.

The budget for Beijing's 2022 bid, Jiandongsays, is approximately $30 million.

If the IOC chooses Beijing to host the 2022 Olympics, Jiandong explains the budget will amount to a little over $1.5 billion. Other expenses related to the Games will cost an additional $1.5 billion.

The Beijing government is hoping to capture the city's culture, historical sites, and natural scenery through the exclusive work of 20 photographers.

The government invited the group of photographers from around the world to support Beijing 2022's efforts, according to a Xinhua report.

"Beijing is a beautiful city with a lovely countryside,"Wang Hui, deputy secretary general of Beijing 2022, says.

"It is also an Olympic city."

Xu Jicheng, Beijing 2022's deputy director of press and communications, says that the bids for the Winter Games are equally matched.

"It is a 50-50 chance for Beijing, as the IOC president Bach put it.

"I think each city has its own strong points and weak points."

Kazakhstan Celebrates Olympic Day

Last week, some three million people throughout Kazakhstan's four largest cities - Almaty, Astana, Oral and Shymkent - joined in Olympic Day celebrations.

The National Olympic Committee of the Republic of Kazakhstan,and the Ministry of Culture and Sports, were among the organizations behind the celebrations in Almaty.

The Kazakh NOC, led byDosmukhambetov Temirkhan Mynaydarovich, has held Olympic Day celebrations every year since 1993.

The event, held in support of Almaty 2022, gathered millions throughout the country for a range of activities including cycling marathons, street ball, sumo fights, and tennis and wrestling matches.

Olympians includingGusal Manurova,Yuriy Melnichenko andSerik Sapiyev got in on the Olympic Day action.

Youngsters sported flags with the Almaty 2022 logo throughout the day's festivities. The respective mayors of all four cities also participated in Olympic Day events.

"This day shows the unity of Kazakhstan, the country that wants the 2022 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games in Almaty," Almaty mayor Akhmetzhan Yessimov said.

"I am grateful that my colleagues from the other cities have helped Almaty to tell the world and in particular the Olympic Movement, 'We want these Games.'"

Written byNicole Bennett

Homepage photo: Getty Images

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