beijing2022_09

Beijing, China. Gold medal of the XXIV Olympic Winter Games in the palm of your hand.

The 2022 Winter Olympics, officially called the XXIV Olympic Winter Games (Chinese: 第二十四届冬季奥林匹克运动会; pinyin: Dì Èrshísì Jiè Dōngjì Àolínpǐkè Yùndònghuì) and commonly known as Beijing 2022 (北京2022), is a 2022 international winter multi-sport event taking place in Beijing, China, and in the nearby district of Chongli in Zhangjiakou, Hebei Province. The games officially opened on 4 February with preliminary events beginning on 2 February. The games are scheduled to conclude on 20 February 2022.

Beijing was selected as host city in 2015 by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) at its 128th session in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia choosing it over Almaty, Kazakhstan after Oslo, Norway withdrawn had been canceled in the wake of a series of revelations about IOC's demands for luxury treatment of IOC members, that turned public opinion and the parliamentary majority against the event. The 2022 Winter Olympics are the first Winter Olympic Games in China, the third 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). In 2022, Beijing became the first city in the world that has hosted both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games, making it the inaugural dual Olympic city.

A total of 2,871 athletes representing 91 NOC's took part in the games. They took part in 109 events in seven sports (15 disciplines).

The 2022 Games are subject to various concerns and controversies including those related to human rights violations in China, such as the Uyghur genocide, which has led to calls for a boycott of the games.[7][8] Like the Summer Olympics held six months earlier in Tokyo, the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in the implementation of health and safety protocols including restrictions on public attendance at the Games, as well as the non-participation of some nations.