User-friendly design, a hallmark of Beijing 2022's Yanqing Olympic Village: organizers

Special: Battle Against Novel Coronavirus

With the 50-day countdown to the Beijing 2022 Winter Games right around the corner, organizers said Thursday that the Yanqing Olympic Village will feature a series of user-friendly services to ensure that the Games is athlete-centered.

The Yanqing Olympic and Paralympic Village is located in the mountains, some 900 meters above sea level. It will host more than 1,200 participants from 90 countries and regions at the Olympics and 500 participants from around 30 delegations for the Paralympics.

Considering the altitude and low temperature at Yanqing, the Village features a warm indoor corridor that connects all residential and public areas.

From the Village, athletes can take either a cable car or shuttle bus to the Alpine skiing venue. After the competition, they can ski down a piste which connects the National Alpine Skiing Center to the Village, saving the trouble of changing and disassembling gear.

In terms of catering, a total of 678 dishes in various styles will be provided for athletes at the three competition zones of Beijing, Yanqing and Zhangjiakou.

The menu, developed over nearly four years, is designed to meet the athletes' different dietary needs and requirements while also taking religious diversity into consideration, said Song Xueying, operations director of the Yanqing Winter Olympic Village.

"The 2022 Winter Olympics coincides with China's Spring Festival. We will add special Chinese and Western dishes, so athletes can enjoy their culinary experience here and try new dishes," Song added.

In terms of epidemic prevention and healthcare, the Village's general medical clinic has 18 departments, including emergency, surgery and internal medicine.

A 200-strong medical support team will provide athletes and team officials with basic outpatient service for 16 hours a day, and emergency medical services for 24 hours a day.

Green plants, books, soothing music and fitness equipment are placed in the isolation room or temporary isolation point.

The Village will begin trial operations for the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games on January 23 next year full-time for 53 days until its official closure on March 16.