One year on, Beijing Winter Olympics leaves lasting imprint on Chinese society

Continued use of Beijing 2022 facilities

To celebrate the anniversary of the 2022 Winter Olympics, a public speed skating competition was held at the Ice Ribbon on Saturday, attracting around 100 amateur skaters of all ages. A unique feature was that the winners were entitled to sign their names on the wall of honor at this Olympic venue.

According to Wu Xiaonan, head of the National Speed Skating Oval's operation team, nearly 210,000 visits have been paid to the venue since it was opened to the public in July last year.

"We are delighted to see more people get involved in winter sports, share the Olympic legacy, and create an even brighter future with our joint efforts," said Wu.

The National Aquatics Center, dubbed as the "Ice Cube" during the 2022 Winter Games, is simultaneously being used for both elite-level sport and tourism purposes.

"I've waited for the Ice Cube to open for a long time," said a citizen surnamed Xiao, who lives in a nearby community. "I don't have to take an hour-long bus ride to the suburbs for curling any more. The facilities here are really fantastic."

Big Air Shougang, a Beijing 2022 Games venue repurposed from a steel mill, has been turned into an outdoor sporting resort that operates year-round.

With the new snow season beginning in China, enthusiastic skiers and snowboarders have been eager to hit the slopes.

Visits to the National Alpine Skiing Center, which is located in the mountains of Beijing's Yanqing district and staged 11 Alpine skiing competitions during the 2022 Winter Games, have reached 30,000 since its opening in December last year.

"The mountain scenery along different levels of tracks provide amateur skiers with a hugely enjoyable experience," said 36-year-old skiing enthusiast Li Jia.