A design sketch of the Winter Sports Thematic Exhibition. Photo from the website of Beijing Olympic City Development Association

The 2020 China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS) has started countdown. As one of the eight thematic exhibitions of the CIFTIS, the Winter Sports Thematic Exhibition is expected to be unveiled at the China National Convention Center earlier this September. A series of activities will be held for it, including forums, exhibitions and business matchmaking.

The winter sports section of the CIFTIS will maintain the consistent characteristics of “internationalization, industrialization and popularization”, and the preparation for the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics will be highlighted. Taking the Olympic games as an opportunity, hoping to “realize the matchmaking with international winter sports resources and boost the development of China’s snow and ice industry”, the event is expected to underscore the important position of the winter sports industry in modern global trade in services, and promote integrated international development of sports, science, culture and tourism, and health industries.

Heavyweight guests from the International Olympic Committee, international winter sport organizations, the United Nations and countries that do well in winter sports will be invited to the Winter Sports Thematic Exhibition, and the exhibition will be joined by more than 20 countries including Austria, Norway, the Czech Republic, France, Japan, Italy, Finland, Iceland, Switzerland and Germany. A total of over 500 brands from China and foreign countries will participate in online and offline exhibitions, in which international brands accounted for about 50 percent. Besides, 260 guests from more than 20 countries and regions will deliver speeches at thematic forums. A total of 200,000 million people are expected to hit the exhibition venues.

The Winter Sports Thematic Exhibition covers an area of around 16,000 square meters and consists of 2 exhibition areas. One is at the comprehensive exhibition area at China National Convention Center, where the latest preparations for the Winter Olympics, the latest technology and services of international ice and snow industry, as well as the achievements of sino-foreign cooperation, will be displayed. The other is held outdoor at the thematic exhibition area on the south side of the Linglong Tower, which will showcase the related technical services achievements of the public participation in ice and snow sports.

To help with the preparation for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and Paralympics, the Winter Sports Thematic Exhibition will focus on winter Olympic games, winter sports trade in services, solutions to winter sports venues and technologies, winter sports logistics, winter sports high-tech services and winter sports technologies.

During the exhibition, specific exhibition areas of the Olympics will be set up by the Beijing Organising Committee for the 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games and the Chinese Olympic Committee to introduce winter sports knowledge. Visitors will also have the chance to meet champions of Winter Olympics.

In addition, the Winter Sports Thematic Exhibition will also launch a series of activities tailored for winter sports fans, including indoor skiing, snow house building and stimulated off-road skating.

The Beijing Organising Committee for the 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games will also showcase how the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics has promoted urban development, improved livelihood and created a great life through venue construction, events organizing, and technology.

Mayors of the cities that were once hosts of the Winter Olympics, as well as planners, designers and managers that had participated in the organization of previous Winter Olympics will be invited to the event to discuss important topics on urban development, urban planning, utilization of venues after the games, and international cooperation among Winter Olympics hosts, so as to contribute their wisdom to the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and pave an innovative path of sustainable development for Beijing, a city that has hosted both summer and winter Olympics.