Foreign Skiers Head to Zhangjiakou Chongli's Resorts

Hailing from a country with more ski resorts than China, Japanese Ski Association official Wakatsuki Hitoshi has nevertheless sent many groups of skiers to train in Zhangjiakou, Hebei province, since 2004.

Featuring high-standard ski trails covered by artificial and natural snow, Zhangjiakou's Chongli county appeals to avid skiers from China's neighbors, including Hitoshi's Japanese athletes. That's one reason it was selected as the co-host of Beijing's bid for the 2022 Winter Olympic Games.

"Japanese skiers used to train in Europe during the early phase of the skiing season, but Chongli has emerged as a better choice in recent years," Hitoshi, a JSA council member, said at a news conference in Beijing on Tuesday.

"When Japan is too warm to keep snow from melting in November, the climate in Chongli is already suitable for making high-quality snow trails, not to mention the various accommodation choices here," he said.

Since 2004, approximately 500 foreign skiers from Japan, South Korea and Russia have visited Chongli annually for early season training, according to Song Zhiyong, deputy general manager of Chongli's Genting Resort.

Beijing is competing against Almaty, Kazakhstan, to host the 2022 Winter Games. The winner will be selected by the International Olympic Committee on July 31 in Kuala Lumpur.

From its beginnings in 1996 with only a rough 300-meter snow trail hand-packed by villagers, the ski industry in Chongli has developed into a cluster of four major commercial resorts, which altogether operate 82 high-standard slopes and 24 cableways to accommodate more than 1 million visitors a year.

Foreign skiers head to Chongli's resorts

If Beijing wins the bid, the county will stage six snow disciplines including freestyle skiing, biathlon and Nordic combined at various venues, some of which are already built.

"It doesn't happen by chance. The dry and cold weather and mountainous terrain provide ideal conditions in this region to develop ski resorts," said Wei Qinghua, chairman of China Mountain Development Co and senior consultant to Beijing's bid committee.

Still, the relatively dry winter in North China has drawn some doubts from international media about reliance on artificial snow in Chongli, which was cited as a challenge in an evaluation report released earlier this month.

Industry experts said it's unnecessary to worry because making artificial snow is an international practice widely adopted by resorts worldwide in hosting high-level competitions, even in places with abundant natural snowfall.

"The International Ski Federation requires artificial snow on all competition and training courses because it's more resistant to warm weather and has the recommended density for competitive skiing," said Mojca Ogris-Schimberg, senior manager of Demaclenko, a global provider of snow-making systems for resorts.

"Without question, the conditions in Beijing and Zhangjiakou are ideal for the necessary snow-making," she said.