The 2022 Winter Olympics is scheduled on February 4 to 20. Let's take a quick look at the location, the mascot, venues, new events, schedule and how to watch the Games.
Host City
In July 2015, at the 128th IOC Session in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Olympics officials have elected Beijing as host city for the year 2022.
The 2022 Winter Olympics shall be the first Winter Olympics in China, the second overall Olympics in China, and the last of three consecutive Olympics in East Asia (after the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, and the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan).
As its second Olympics Games to host, Beijing shall be the first city to have ever hosted both the Summer and Winter Olympics: 4 existing indoor locations originally constructed for the 2008 Summer Olympics will be used, while the Beijing National Stadium will once again host the opening and closing ceremonies. Beijing is the biggest city to host the Winter Olympics.
The Beijing 2022 Olympics is the 24th Winter Olympics. The first Winter Olympics was held in Chamonix, France, in 1924.
Time Differences and How to Watch the Games
China is 13 hours ahead of the Eastern Time Zone, and 16 hours ahead of the Pacific Time Zone, so just like the Tokyo Games, the audience will have access to unprecedented full-day coverage of the Opening Ceremony.
For USA viewers, NBC shall broadcast the games online and on TV. NBCUniversal will present a Winter Olympic record of 2,800+ hours of coverage across NBC, Peacock, CNBC, USA Network, NBCOlympics.com, and the NBC Sports app. Live coverage starts at 6:30am ET on NBC and Peacock.
In the UK, fans can watch the Games on BBC TV and other digital platforms.
Schedule
Competition for the 2022 Olympic Winter Games begins with early rounds of curling on February 2 Wednesday. The Opening Ceremony shall then be on February 4 Friday. The Closing Ceremony is scheduled on February 20 Sunday.
According to the Games' website, the men's ice hockey final, the 4-man bobsleigh, the women's cross-country skiing and curling events are set on the last day of competition.
You can read more about the schedule here.
Sports - Are There New Events this Year?
There will be 109 events across 15 disciplines in seven winter sports.
- Alpine skiing
- Biathlon
- Bobsleigh
- Cross-country skiing
- Curling
- Figure skating
- Freestyle skiing
- Ice hockey
- Luge
- Nordic combined
- Short track speed skating
- Skeleton
- Ski jumping
- Snowboarding
- Speed skating
For 2022, the International Olympic Committee has added seven new Winter Olympic events.
- Women's monobob
- Freestyle skiing big air (men's and women's)
- Mixed team events in short track speed skating team relay
- Ski jumping
- Freestyle skiing aerials
- Snowboard cross
These sports are organized into three Categories:
1. Ice sports
- Bobsled - women's monobob, two-man, two woman, four-man
- Luge - men's singles, women's singles, mixed doubles, mixed team relay
- Skeleton - men's, women's
- Ice hockey - men's, women's
- Figure skating - men's singles, women's singles, pairs, team, ice dancing
- Speed skating
- Short track speed skating - 500m, 1000m, 1500m and relays
- Curling - men's, women's, mixed doubles
2. Alpine, skiing and snowboarding events
- Alpine skiing - downhill, super-G, giant slalom, slalom, super combined, mixed team
- Freestyle skiing - aerials, moguls, ski cross, ski halfpipe, ski slopestyle
- Snowboarding - parallel giant slalom, halfpipe, snowboard cross, big air, slopestyle
3. Nordic events
- Biathlon - individual, sprint, pursuit, mass start, relay events
- Cross-country skiing - individual sprint, team sprint, freestyle, pursuit, classical, relays
- Ski jumping
- Nordic combined
Overall, athletes shall compete in 7 sports (biathlon, bobsleigh, curling, ice hockey, luge, skating and skiing), with 15 various disciplines across all sports.
The Medals
Athletes participating in the games are vying to win and take home at least one of the 109 medals up for grabs.
The design for the bronze, silver and gold medals was inspired by traditional Chinese astronomy and astrology, since the games will be held coinciding with the Chinese New Year celebration.
According to the official website, the Beijing 2022 medals - named "Tong Xin" which means "together as one" - are comprised of five rings and a center. The design was based on Chinese ancient jade circle pendants, while the five rings, of course, represent the Olympic spirit to bring people together and the splendor of the Olympic Winter Games being shared worldwide.
A total of 2,871 athletes (1,581 men and 1,290 women) from 91 nations will compete in the 2022 Winter Olympics.
The Mascots
The official mascot of the 2022 Winter Olympics is Bing Dwen Dwen, a giant panda. Wearing a suit of ice, a heart of gold and a love of winter sports, the panda is ready to share the true spirit of the Olympics with the whole world.
The official mascot of the 2022 Winter Paralympics is Shuey Rhon Rhon, an anthropomorphic Chinese lantern. Lanterns represent harvest, celebration, warmth and light. Its wishful shape at the top symbolizes auspicious happiness.
Olympics Hosts in the Future
- Summer Olympics 2024 - Paris, France
- Winter Olympics 2026 - Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy
- Summer Olympics 2028 - Los Angeles, USA
- Winter Olympics 2030 - TBD
- Summer Olympics 2032 - Brisbane, Australia
Source: https://olympics.com/en/beijing-2022/
