Beijing's edge in 2022 Winter Olympics bid(2)

Former NBA player Yao Ming, a promotion ambassador of the 2022 bid, said Beijing's infrastructure and experience as a 2008 host made it "a prime candidate".

"Our bid is in line with the IOC's 2020 Agenda," said Yang Yang, who is an IOC member and China's first ever winter Olympic gold winner.

PUBLIC SUPPORT

94.8 percent of the Chinese people, including 91.8 percent of Beijing citizens and 99.5 percent of Zhangjiakou citizens, are in support of their joint bid for the 2022 Winter Olympics, according to the opinion poll last year by the Beijing Branch of Ipsos, a global market research company.

It's stunning to see such a wide public support for the 2022 Olympics bid in a country of over 1.3 billion people. The sincerity, ardor and expectation for 2022 Olympics from Chinese people should be received during the commission's visit of Beijing and can also play a positive role in bidding vote.

LEGACY

It seems nowhere can have a legacy from the 2022 Winter Olympics like it does to Beijing. It's estimated there will be over 300 million Chinese to be involved in the winter sports if Beijing and Zhangjiakou win the bidding for the 2022 Winter Olympic Games.

Over one-third of China's territory has huge potential for developing winter sports. The bidding for the 2022 Winter Olympics will encourage 300 million people in northern China to take part in winter sports, tremendously promoting young people's participation in and the popularization of winter sports.

"It will inspire over 300 million Chinese to participate in winter sports if we win, which will contribute greatly to the development of international Olympic cause," said Chinese President Xi Jinping on January when he met with Sheik Ahmad al-Fahad al-Sabah, president of the Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) and chief of the Olympic Council of Asia.

Xi told Sheik Ahmad that the Chinese government attached "great importance" to Beijing and Zhangjiakou's joint bid for the 2022 Winter Olympic Games.

"Beijing's bid for the Winter Olympics is a springboard for hundreds of millions of Chinese to join in sports on ice and snow," Chinese vice premier Liu Yandong said last month during her visit to the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games Bid Committee.

"The bid will not only spread the Olympic spirit but also popularize winter sports in the country which is striving to be a bona fide world sports power."

The vice premier noted the bid will help promote service sectors such as fitness, leisure, culture and tourism and improve environment in north China.

The legacy from a possible Beijing 2022 Olympics is not confined to the leap forward for the Olympics cause, but also will trigger a profound upgrade for the city.

China is aiming to speed up its environmental protection and improvement, especially to solve the smog trouble in and around Beijing, by taking the advantage of Beijing 2022 efforts.

Clean energies will be developed and energy-saving and eco-friendly technologies and products will be applied extensively in the coming years in Beijing and surrounding cities. Beijing will formulate guides on 2022 sustainable development, establish and implement both the Beijing 2022 sustainability management system and criteria system.

The coming of 2022 Olympics will be a accelerator for the return of Beijing's blue sky.