BEIJING,
Jan. 20 (Xinhua) -- President Xi Jinping has called for advancing
preparation work for the Beijing 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter
Games against difficulties and "with greater perfection." Xi,
also General Secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central
Committee and Chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the
remarks on Wednesday when presiding over a meeting on the Beijing 2022
preparations, following his inspection tours of Beijing and Hebei. Xi
inspected the Games' preparation work in Haidian and Yanqing District,
both of Beijing, on Monday, and the co-host city of Zhangjiakou on
Tuesday. He
extended his thanks to athletes, coaches and construction, managerial
and working staff, and expressed his best wishes for the upcoming
Chinese Lunar New Year. President
Xi Jinping learns about venues construction and athletes' preparations,
and extends greetings to athletes and coaches while visiting the
Capital Gymnasium in Haidian District, Beijing, capital of China, Jan.
18, 2021. (Xinhua/Yao Dawei) PREPARATIONS WITH PERFECTION Xi called on conducting the preparation work "with greater
perfection," replanning and readjusting all work in accordance with new
circumstances while focusing on both epidemic prevention and control and
the organization of the Games. Xi said "simplicity, safety and excellence" should be
prioritized in the Games' preparations. He also called on guarding
against and comprehensively neutralizing all kinds of risks and
diligently carrying out the preparation work, including competition
organization and services, technological application and cultural
activities. An aerial photo taken on Jan. 19, 2021 shows the National Sliding Center in Yanqing District, Beijing. (Xinhua/Zhang Chenlin) As
the Beijing 2022 preparations have entered a crucial stage, Xi urged
efforts to center around staging the Games as scheduled and
comprehensively sort out and implement all preparation work. He required the preparation work to be carried out with respect to six key points: -
Completing the construction of non-competition venues and complementary
facilities on schedule, and increasing necessary facilities for
virus-testing, quarantine and emergencies. -
Ensuring quality operation during the Games with an efficient
management system in place, and improving coordination and
emergency-handling capabilities between regions and sectors. -
Advancing competition services by adhering to the principle of a
"unified standard for three competition zones," namely, urban Beijing,
Yanqing District and Zhangjiakou in Hebei Province. -
Enhancing communication and cooperation with the International Olympic
Committee and other international sports organizations and strictly
implementing epidemic prevention and control measures. - Developing winter sports and encouraging participation of more youngsters. -
Promoting coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region,
striving for more achievements in transportation, environment, industry
and public services, and proactively planning the post-Games utilization
of the venues. "Not
only will we host a successful Winter Olympic extravaganza, but also a
spectacular Games with unique characteristics," Xi said. Children
learn skiing at a ski resort on Jiangjun Mountain in Altay, northwest
China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Nov. 20, 2019. (Xinhua/Sadat) SOLEMN COMMITMENT Hosting
an excellent 2022 Games is a major task of the Party and the country,
and it is a solemn commitment to the international community, Xi noted. He
also stressed delivering a "fantastic, extraordinary and excellent"
Olympics in 2022 with a "green, inclusive, open and clean" approach. Xi
emphasized that Beijing 2022 is an event of great significance at the
outset of the 14th Five-Year Plan period from 2021 to 2025, calling for a
stronger sense of responsibility, mission and urgency during the
preparation work. Xi
noted satisfying results had been produced over the past five years,
thanks to organizers' efficient work, the cooperation of all relevant
parties, and close coordination with international sports organizations. Xi
urged the Games' organizing committee to adhere to the regulations and
institutions, adopt stringent budget management, control the Games'
costs, avoid corruption and make the Games as "pure and clean as ice and
snow." While
visiting the Capital Gymnasium on Monday, Xi said that the CPC Central
Committee places great importance on the preparatory work for Beijing
2022, adding that both the Party and the Chinese people have given
tremendous support in both material and spiritual terms. INDEPENDENT INNOVATION After
arriving at Taizicheng station on Tuesday, Xi visited the athletes'
service hall and observed exhibits, including a rail network map of the
Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the sketch map and sand table of the
Olympic competition zone and the Beijing-Zhangjiakou high-speed rail
link. A
high-speed train arrives at Taizicheng Station in Chongli District of
Zhangjiakou, north China's Hebei Province, Dec. 30, 2019. (Xinhua/Peng
Ziyang) Thanks
to the rail link, it took Xi less than 50 minutes to cover the 200
kilometers between the two cities, a trip he flew four years ago when he
last inspected the Olympic co-host. Xi
hailed the high-speed rail, which marks essential progress in the
preparations for the Winter Olympics, as a successful demonstration of
China's independent innovation. He
pointed out that China has undergone a process from introduction,
digestion, absorption and re-innovation to independent innovation,
before becoming a world leader in high-speed rail technology. STRIVE FOR EXCELLENCE In
his Wednesday's speech, Xi said that both competitive and technical
strengths are needed to raise the standard of modern sports. Athletes should have the will and determination to fight for national glory and get the best possible results, he added. Wu
Dajing of China competes in the 2019-2020 ISU World Cup Short Track in
Dordrecht, the Netherlands, Feb. 15, 2020. (Xinhua/Zheng Huansong) Xi,
a keen fan of winter sports himself, said that he is looking forward to
China's first ever Olympic Alpine skiing medal in 2022. Since
Yang Yang ended China's Winter Olympic gold drought in 2002, the
world's most populous nation has triumphed in speed skating, short track
speed skating, figure skating and freestyle skiing, but hasn't won a
medal in the blue-riband event of Alpine skiing. "Train
as hard as possible and work harder on technological innovations, learn
from advanced concepts and technology from around the world, and raise
the level of training and competition," Xi said.
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