World Winter Sports (Beijing) Expo 2022 Opens,
The World Winter Sports (Beijing) Expo 2022 (hereinafter referred to as the WWSE) was unveiled in Beijing. The global power of ice and snow gathered here to celebrate the foremost feast of the ice and snow industry. Li Yingchuan, deputy head of the General Administration of Sport of China (GASC), Zhang Jiandong, vice mayor of Beijing and executive vice president of the Beijing Organizing Committee for the 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (BOCOG), Zhao Wen, director of the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Sports, and Zhu Dongfang, president of Asia Digital Group, visited the exhibition hall.
Hosting the WWSE is Beijing's solemn commitment to the international community when it bade for the 2022 Olympic Winter Games. Since its inception in 2016, it has been held annually in Beijing and has now become the largest, most authoritative and professional expo in the global ice and snow industry after seven years of development, highly recognized by the industry in and out of China.
This WWSE, with Asia Digital Group as one of the hosts, continues the theme of "The Power of Ice and Snow". In the post-Winter Olympics era, the sustainable development of the ice and snow industry will be comprehensively promoted, and the exchanges between China and the world at large will be advanced through the full integration of global ice and snow resources and the continuous strengthening of international exchanges and cooperation to create more values for the global winter sports and ice and snow industry. Its exhibition section includes four themed exhibition areas in eight categories. Over 600 brands from nearly 30 countries and regions has participated in the exhibition, and more than 200,000 winter sports enthusiasts have been involved online or offline during the five-day event.
Pooling "The Power of Ice and Snow" to Help the Global Ice and Snow Industry Further Flourish
On the morning of September 1st, the Main Forum of the International Sports Services Trade Conference & the World Winter Sports (Beijing) Expo was held in Shougang Park, addressed by Deputy Head of the GASC Li Yingchuan and Vice Mayor of Beijing and Executive Vice President of the BOCOG Zhang Jiandong. Government officials and industry experts from countries around the world "came" to the site offline or via online videos.
According to Li Yingchuan, with the extensive participation of all sectors of society, the sports industry has shown vigorous development. The total scale and added value of the sports industry increased from 952.6 billion yuan and 313.6 billion yuan in 2012 to 2.74 trillion yuan and 1.07 trillion yuan in 2020, with an average annual growth rate of 14.1% and 16.6% respectively. Its added value in GDP rose to 1.06% in 2020 from 0.6% in 2012. Among them, the sports services industry has maintained a good momentum of development, whose proportion in the sports industry jumped from 34.6% in 2012 to 68.7% in 2020, with growth rate much higher than the average of the tertiary industry in the same period.
Zhang Jiandong pointed out that under the leadership of the Chinese government, this year has witnessed every effort made by us to overcome difficulties and challenges such as the COVID-19, and the presentation of a streamlined, safe and splendid Olympic Games to the world. The successful hosting of the Beijing 2022 has further stimulated the sports enthusiasm of hundreds of millions of Chinese people. The Chinese government has accelerated the development of sports in line with people's new expectations for a better life. Furthermore, at the Review and Awards Ceremony of the 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, President Xi Jinping stated that we must fully leverage the important role of sports in advancing people's well-rounded development and step up efforts to build China into a leading sporting nation. It is imperative to thoroughly study and implement the guidelines of important speeches made by President Xi, vigorously carry forward the spirit of the Beijing 2022, give full play to the advantages of the dual-Olympic city, and comprehensively promote the development of mass sports, competitive sports, and the sports industry, so as to make citizens' lives more colorful and the city full of vitality.
Zhao Wen introduced the sports services industry in 2022, and Peng Weiyong, deputy director of the Sports Economy Department at the GASC, released the Report on China's Sports Services Trade (2021). In addition, guests who delivered speeches include British Trade Commissioner for China John Edwards, Minister Counsellor of the Department for International Trade at the British Embassy Beijing Sohail Shaikh, President of the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association Jason Ferguson, President of the International Sports Press Association Gianni Merlo, Executive Director of the Olympic Games at the International Olympic Committee Christophe Dubi, President of the International Biathlon Union Olle Dahlin and Former Secretary-General of the International Ski Federation Sarah Lewis.
Christophe Dubi proposed in his video speech that the development of Beijing and Hebei Province will be very different after the Olympic Winter Games. And it's the very thing for the Olympic Movement and for winter sports at large. Olle Dahlin put forward that this year's WWSE is particularly important as it's the first edition to take place after the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games. Previously, this Expo was used to support with the preparation for the games. It was an opportunity for the Chinese and international sports community to connect, share best practice and plan for how to maximize the Beijing 2022. Now we are in a post-Olympic era. It's more important than ever that legacy is not forgotten.
Key to this will rightly be continuing to invest in winter sport.
Afterwards, a round-table dialogue, themed as "Focus on the 'Post-Winter Olympics': China's Ice and Snow-the Future Can Be Expected" was held. Suggestions on promoting the high-quality development of China's ice and snow industry were offered by such guests as Zhao Yinggang, chairman of the China Sled Association and deputy director of the Sustainable Development Committee at the BOCOG, Michael Berger, counsellor of the Commercial Office at the Austrian Embassy in China, Nico H. Schiettekatte, counsellor for Health, Welfare and Sports at the Embassy of Kingdom of the Netherlands in Beijing,
Zeng Dechao, chairman of the Yulin City Committee of the CPPCC of Shaanxi Province, Li Yanqiu, general manager of Doppelmayr China and Shen Yumei, director of the Engo Division at TechnoAlpin Group. Executive Vice President of Asia Digital Group Zhang Li released the Research Report on China's Winter Sports Industry Development (2022) for the reference of the ice and snow industry.
In addition to the Main Forum, the WWSE 2022 presented a number of parallel forums and supporting activities such as the Olympic City Development Forum, the Outdoor Living Forum and the Sports Science and Technology Entrepreneurship Competition to facilitate the exchange and integration of the global ice and snow industry.
600+ Companies Involved as Exhibitors to Create a Spectacular Event for the Ice and Snow Industry
The WWSE has always adhered to the tenet, "for full matchmaking of international winter sports resources and sound development of China's ice and snow industry". This WWSE has further strengthened the integration of global ice and snow resources, with an internationalization rate of nearly 68%. It has attracted more than 20 ice and snow countries including Austria, Italy, Japan, Canada, France, the Netherlands, Finland, the United Kingdom and Slovenia to participate, showing the world's most cutting-edge winter sports equipment, ice and snow facilities, ice and snow technology and Olympic culture to the public.
The exhibition section consists of the themed exhibitions of ice and snow technology, international pavilion, Olympic achievements, integration of ice and snow culture, ice and snow / sports events, fashion show, camp life, ice and snow experience, and sports activities experience. The themed exhibitions act as an excellent stage for the dissemination of ice and snow culture in various countries and regions and the promotion of winter sports products.
As one of the origins of modern ice and snow sports, Austria, together with Doppelmayr, Axess and other well-known Austrian ice and snow brands, appeared in the form of a national pavilion, displaying outdoor equipment in ski resorts, ski teaching and training and ice-making equipment and technology. "Made in Austria" presents its high-quality products and services to the public, ranging from premium sports equipment to facilities in pistes.
Many notable enterprises from China and the world at large showed their latest achievements and cutting-edge explorations with ice and snow technology and ice and snow equipment. Norway's largest sports brand Swix, with a professional ski event operation team and rich experience in sports event organization and operation, showed its latest research of "Dynamic Friction S-LAB" on site. The famous Italian brand and an "old friend" of the WWSE, TechnoAlpin, showcased, with the theme of "Combining the Powers of Ice and Snow Equipment", its world's most cutting-edge snowmaking technology, that is, TR10 automatic gun-type snowmaker.
The Beijing Olympic Winter Games are a rare historical opportunity for the development of the ice and snow industry, and the development and reuse of the Olympic heritage has also taken the center stage. In view of this, this WWSE has set up an exhibition area for the promotion of Olympic achievements to display the transformation of high-tech achievements of the Olympic Winter Games and the services for Olympic venues. Visitors can not only see the fruitful achievements of the Beijing 2022, but also feel the thinking and practice of the inheritance and reuse of the Olympic heritage.
Yanqing, as one of the three major competition zones of this Olympic Winter Games, has made every effort to build a demonstration zone for international sports and ice and snow industry. At the booth of the Yanqing competition zone, we can see various Olympic Winter Games and ice and snow related exhibits scattered on the hexagonal prism of snowflakes. Besides, based on Xiaohaituo Mountain, where the core area of the competition zone is located, the Eye of Haituo was built with LED screens in the center of the exhibition hall to show visitors the wonderful moments of the Beijing 2022 in Yanqing and relive the games together with visitors under the atmosphere of Olympic events so as to extend the popularity of the games. The Beijing Institute for International Olympic Studies, built based at the Capital University of Physical Education and Sports (CUPES), is the first cultural heritage of the Beijing Olympic Winter Games. The CUPES showcased the heritage in forms of sports science and technology and services for the Olympic Winter Games, helping visitors to understand how the legacy of the Olympic Games unlocks lasting benefits. Furthermore, a stage for China's power of ice and snow has been set up as usual, where Liaoning Province, Yulin City, Shijingshan District and other ice and snow powers in China also showed their ice and snow features.
It is worth noting that the ski resorts including the Wanlong Paradise Resort, the Thaiwoo Ski Resort, the Beidahu Ski Resort, the Wanda Changbaishan Ski Resort and the Fulong Four Seasons Town appeared in the joint exhibition of ski resorts in the competition zones of the Beijing 2022, enabling the public to catch a glimpse of the Olympic venues.
The concept of a guest country of honor was proposed for the first time in the WWSE 2017. In detail, a country with great influence in ice and snow sports and industry is invited by each WWSE as the guest country of honor. Over the past few years, Switzerland, Austria, Finland and Italy have successively become the guest countries of honor. This WWSE has specially set up an international joint exhibition area to display the images and resources of the previous guest countries of honor to promote the exchanges of international ice and snow industry in the post-Winter Olympics era.
Diverse Supporting Activities Arranged to Comprehensively Enrich the Ice and Snow Experience for the Public
The interactive experience ignites the "ice and snow enthusiasm" among the public. A variety of supporting activities with novel forms have been carried out from the two dimensions of advancing the ice and snow industry and promoting winter sports, so as to stimulate the enthusiasm of the public to participate in ice and snow sports. A series of supporting activities showing the highlights of the ice and snow industry include the Sports Science and Technology Entrepreneurship Competition and the Industry TOP Awards for investors and innovative and entrepreneurial projects, and the Fashion Show and the Experience for Camp Life, Hot Sporty Frisbees, Recreational Vehicles and Mass Sports for the general public. These activities act as a stage for the development of the sports industry in the post-Winter Olympics era and further promote the mutual benefit and exchange of global sports services trade. Furthermore, exhibitors can also shorten the distance with consumers through on-site business matchmaking, special promotion, and matching transactions.
The Sports Science and Technology Entrepreneurship Competition has been held for the fifth time since 2017 and discovered a large number of cutting-edge high-tech sports enterprises. With focus on the development of the Olympic heritage, this competition aims to explore more emerging technologies and help more enterprises and capital connect to promote the innovative development of sports technology. In addition, the Industry TOP Awards, covering the whole sports industry in this Sports Services Section, has set up three major awards, namely Top 10 Ski Resorts, Top Winter Destinations of the Year and Top Brands Awards for Global Innovative Enterprises, which have been announced on site, and a number of brands on the list will be new benchmarks in the industry. Afterwards, the awards ceremony was staged.
This WWSE has enhanced the appeal of various supporting activities, involving interactive areas such as Ice and Snow Consumption, Camp Life Experience, Ice and Snow / Outdoor Fashion Show, and Healthy Life + so as to engage the public in ice and snow sports, further stimulate sports consumption and promote sports trade and cooperation. Real ice show, curling, parent-child interaction and VR skiing have also attracted more visitors. On top of that, the Shougang Park has newly set up the WWSE Experience Hall to connect the offline exhibition with the digital one. Therefore, exhibitors and visitors can have more choices and enjoy different services, further strengthening the brand and service of the WWSE. These rich and wonderful supporting activities not only provide a display platform for the ice and snow exhibitors, but also attract visitors to get involved in ice and snow sports, stimulate sports consumption, and boost the ice and snow industry to become bigger and stronger.
The Cloud WWSE was held at the same time with the offline one, livestreaming multiple parallel forums and on-site activities to create a global digital ice and snow industry display platform without limitations of space to maximize the involvement of practitioners and winter sports enthusiasts.
China's winter sports and ice and snow industry have ushered in a golden period of development accompanied by the successful holding of the Beijing 2022. In the post-Winter Olympics era, the WWSE, as one of the legacies of the games, has taken the Beijing 2022 as an opportunity as always and given full play to its platform advantages to explore the innovation, transformation and upgrade of the ice and snow industry with ice and snow as the medium and industry as the foundation so as to promote the popularization of winter sports knowledge in China, and advance the development of the global ice and snow industry.
