Beijing capable of hosting 2022 Winter Olympics: IOC official

International Evaluation Commission Chairman Alexander Zhukov (right) and colleagues inspect facilities at National Stadium in Beijing on March 24, 2015. (Photo: Feng Yongbin/China Daily)

The International Olympic Committee's Evaluation Commission said on Saturday that its five-day inspection visit to Beijing has assured members that the Chinese capital is capable of hosting a successful Winter Olympics in 2022.

Chaired by Russian IOC member Alexander Zhukov, the Evaluation Commission concluded its on-site assessment trip to Beijing and its co-host city Zhangjiakou, Hebei province, on Saturday by holding a wrap-up press conference in Beijing.

"The last five days have been incredibly informative and productive. We evaluated the Beijing bid in great detail by focusing on 15 themes, including the "Athletes' Experience" – a theme that was added by Olympic Agenda 2020," Zhukov said in his opening remarks.

"And our visit has confirmed that Beijing is capable of hosting a successful Olympic Winter Games in 2022,"he added.

During inspection tours in downtown Beijing, northwest Beijing's Yanqing county and Zhangjiakou, the commission's delegates asked approximately 150 questions concerning various issues, including venue layout and legacy. The Beijing bid committee addressed them all in a timely manner, Zhukov said.

In addition to venue inspections, the Beijing bid committee also presented detailed plans of how its bid of hosting an athlete-centered, sustainable and economical games will align with the Olympic Agenda 2020 recommendations that were approved by the IOC in December as a new guideline for future Olympics.

Zhukov said he and both his colleagues were impressed by the coherence of Beijing's bid concept to Agenda 2020.

"My colleagues and I were pleased to see that the Beijing team has incorporated the spirit and goals of Olympic Agenda 2020 in their proposed plan. It is clear that the 2022 bid has strong government and public support.

"Beijing offers a clear concept for the Games, with good use of existing venues. It was very pleasant to see that so many venues from the 2008 Games are providing legacy benefits, and that they have had a significant role in planning for 2022.

"We also saw the legacy of the 2008 Games in the level of expertise and knowledge on the Beijing 2022 bid team," he said.

The IOC evaluation commission on June 1 will release a comprehensive assessment report on the opportunities and risks of the bids of Beijing and its bidding opponent, Almaty, Kazakhstan, which will provide important references for the IOC members to select the eventual host of the 2022 Winter Olympics on July 31 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Both candidate cities can keep in touch with IOC after the evaluation and will have opportunities to present any plan adjustments directly to the IOC and winter sports international federations in Lausanne on June 9 and 10, Zhukov said.

Guo Jinlong, a member of the Political Bureau of the Chinese Communist Party's Central Committee and Secretary of the CPC Beijing Municipal Committee, pledged that Beijing will realize all of its commitments in the bid plan to host a successful winter sports gala in 2022 if the bid succeeds.

"The Beijing 2022 Bid Committee will follow the guidance provided by the IOC Evaluation Commission to further strengthen our plan for the 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games and we guarantee that all commitments that were made in the Candidature File and during the past week of the visit will be fully met. All the bid plans are embedded in our region's long-term development plans and China's stable economy means that all investments will be guaranteed. We are looking for a win-win benefit for the Olympic Movement and China," Guo said at the evaluation visit's closing ceremony.

Beijing's 2022 bid fuels China's ambition to rapidly expand the winter sports industry across the country and wider region. The desire to grow the winter sports market is underpinned by an established plan by Chinese President Xi Jinping to attract an additional 300 million people in the country to participate in winter sports, said Wang Anshun , president of Beijing 2022 Bid Committee and mayor of Beijing.

Wang also emphasized that the Beijing 2022 bid will fully utilize the ready-made venues left by the 2008 Summer Olympics to realize an economical operation.

From this visit we can see that your Games in 2008 have left a profound legacy. We can see this legacy in the venues, and in your plans to use many of those venues in 2022. We can also see the legacy of 2008 in the level of expertise and knowledge of the Beijing 2022 bid team," Zhukov said.