500-day countdown: progress in hosting a green 2022 Olympics

BEIJING, Sept. 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- A news report by China.org.cn on the 500-day countdown of the 2022 winter Olympics:

Today marks the 500-day countdown of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games. As the first city to host both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games, Beijing, together with co-host city Zhangjiakou, has already impressed the world with excellent progress in fulfilling the promise to host a green Olympics.

The National Aquatics Center, also known as the "Water Cube," was the main venue for water sports during the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics. After a dramatic transformation, the Water Cube has since become the "Ice Cube," which is set to host the curling events for Beijing 2022. With a supporting framework and a movable ice-making system, the Water Cube can have an "ice-water conversion." And it's also the first time for ice sports events to be hosted in an aquatics center previously used for a Summer Olympics.

Yunding Ski Field in Zhangjiakou is another venue that has been renovated for Beijing 2022. Making full use of existing facilities including ski tracks and cableways, the field will host snowboarding and freestyle skiing events. After the Games, the venue will be preserved as a permanent Olympic legacy, as well as a base for international events and public winter sports.

The National Speed Skating Oval is the only newly built ice sports venue for Beijing 2022. The building, with 22 separate "ice ribbons" circling its exterior, adopts the world's most sustainable and advanced CO2 transcritical ice-making technology. Unlike most ice sports venues, which rely on ice-making refrigerants that contain the ozone layer-damaging chemical Freon, the National Speed Skating Oval's freezing systems are 30% more efficient than that of traditional systems. Any excess heat is then used for dehumidification, ice surface maintenance, and hot water generation.

In addition, the world's first ±500 kV Zhangbei flexible DC power transmission and transformation project will enable all Beijing 2022 venues to realize 100% use of green electricity, the first time in the history of the Olympic Games. With a focus on ecological conservation, Beijing's Yanqing district has given special consideration and improved protection to wild animals and their habitats surrounding the venues. Measures combining in-situ, near-situ, and ex-situ conservation have also been introduced to protect rare plants nearby. And there are more efforts to make Beijing 2022 green and sustainable.

China has integrated sustainability into every aspect of its preparation for Beijing 2022, striving to implement the themes of "Positive Environmental Impact," "New Development for the Region," and "Better Life for the People." This is consistent with the development philosophy that China has promoted and pursued.

China's efforts to ensure a green Olympics will continue, and there are many more results to be highlighted as 2022 approaches.

China Mosaic
http://www.china.org.cn/video/node_7230027.htm
500-day countdown: progress in hosting a green 2022 Olympics
http://www.china.org.cn/video/2020-09/22/content_76728330.htm

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