Harbin, China, January 13, 2024: The Deputy Secretary of the CPC (Communist Party of China) Heilongjiang Provincial Committee, Zhang Anshun, described the OCA Coordination Committee members as “valued mentors” at a farewell reception on Saturday afternoon.
Deputy Secretary Zhang, along with the Mayor of Harbin, Zhang Qixiang, hosted the OCA Coordination Committee in the banquet hall of the Shangri-La Hotel and thanked the visitors for their contribution to a successful three-day Coordination Committee meeting for the 9th Asian Winter Games Harbin 2025.
“We have received a lot of helpful advice and support,” he said.
“Sport is a signature of social development and human progress and the Asian Winter Games in Harbin next year will promote peace and stability.
“Since the successful hosting of the 3rd Asian Winter Games in Harbin in 1996, almost 30 years later Harbin will have the privilege to host this event again. Harbin will become the first Chinese city to host two Asian Winter Games.”
Deputy Secretary Zhang described the 9th Asian Winter Games, due to take place in February 2025, as a significant event for the nation, not just Heilongjiang province and Harbin city.
“This visit of the OCA Coordination Committee, therefore, has been very important. You are valued mentors, and we will use your comments, advice and presence to fill the gaps in our preparations.
“You have packed a lot of activities into your three-day schedule and have provided us with constructive advice from your professional experience.”
He vowed to maintain close cooperation and exchange with the OCA and Chinese Olympic Committee in the coming months.
OCA Coordination Committee Chair Timothy Fok thanked the local organising committee (LOC) for their warm hospitality and interesting schedule from January 11-13 and praised the teamwork of the LOC, Sports Ministry and Chinese Olympic Committee.
“The Asian Winter Games is always a catalyst for development and will provide a legacy for the people,” he said.
“I think we have come away extremely satisfied with the arrangements. We have experienced all the things that make Harbin one of the best tourist destinations in China.”
*On the final morning of the Coordination Committee meeting, the OCA visited the Harbin International Convention and Exhibition Centre – venue for the opening and closing ceremony of the 9th AWG.
The centre, which opened in 2004, covers 44 hectares and has 380,000 sqm of floor space in three exhibition halls. The capacity for the opening and closing ceremony is 17,000, comprised of 18 rows of 9,000 retractable seats and 12 rows of 8,000 fixed seats.
The tour then continued to the nearby Victories Hotel, which has been proposed as the Athletes’ Village in Harbin and able to accommodate 1,200 athletes.
The tour ended at the Sofitel Hotel, proposed as the second OCA official hotel along with the Shangri-La. The Sofitel has 320 rooms.