Beijing 2022 Bid Committe receives certifications from all winter sports federations

BEIJING - The Beijing 2022 Bid Committee has received venue certifications from all the seven winter sports federations, a Chinese sports official said on Monday.

"We have received all the venue certifications from the seven International Federations by early December, which is a requirement in order to bid for the Winter Games," Ren Hongguo, head of China's Winter Sports Administration Center, said in a conference featuring the country's top sports officials.

China's Beijing and Zhangjiakou are now in a joint bid for the 2022 Winter Olympic Games. And the seven International Federations are: the International Biathlon Union (IBU), the International Ski Federation (FIS), the International Skating Union (ISU), the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF), the World Curling Federation (WCF), the International Bobsleigh and Tobogganing Federation (FIBT) and the International Luge Federation (FIL).

Delegates from the seven international federations have completed their fact-finding visits to Beijing by the end of Novermber. They visited Yanqing, Beijing and Zhangjiakou, Hebei Province, to have a first-hand look at the sites where the Olympic and Paralympic competitions would be held if Beijing was to win the rights to host the Games and were pleased with what they have found.

"During their field trip, delegates from the federations also provided some useful advice to the Beijing 2022 Bid Committee and we will make sure to have the advices implemented," Ren said.

The International Olympic Committee will elect the 2022 host city at the 128th IOC Session in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on July 31, 2015. Beijing and Kazakhstan's Almaty are the only two candidates to bid for the quadrennial winter sports gala.