Harbin, China, September 23, 2024: Chinese sports official Yang Shu’an is expecting high ticket sales for the 9thAsian Winter Games in Harbin, China next February.
Wrapping up the Chefs de Mission Seminar on Monday afternoon, Mr. Yang said residents of Harbin city and Heilongjiang province would be keen to attend the AWG, as well as international visitors.
“We have very high expectations of the Asian Winter Games, and one of the reasons is due to the tickets,” said Mr. Yang, Vice President of organising committee HAWGOC.
“We are still working with the different client groups before we finalise the ticket policy and inform the National Olympic Committees.”
Harbin will stage the ice events at the 9th AWG and Yabuli, some 190km away, will host the snow events.
The five stadiums in Harbin are all existing venues, some of them from the Asian Winter Games in 1996, and renovation work will be completed by the end of October.
With the capacity limited, and winter sports favourites such as figure skating, speed skating, short track and ice hockey all taking place in Harbin, the demand for tickets is expected to be high from locals and visitors alike.
Harbin is known as the cradle of winter sports in China and the 9th AWG is looking to build on the success of the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 and further develop ice and snow sports in the country.
Mr. Yang closed the meeting by saying that 16 presentations had been made for the team leaders. “I am very proud of our local organising committee. They have done a great job and made great progress. We have received some very positive suggestions and comments which we will take on board in our final preparations.”
He added that Harbin must find the right balance in terms of hotels as February will be a busy time for tourists to the world-famous Ice and Snow World while accommodating all the athletes and officials for the AWG.
Mr. Yang concluded: “We need joint effort; we need to work together and we need to show respect, understanding and cooperation with each other. Let us work together with strong solidarity to guarantee the success of the Asian Winter Games.”
The CDM Seminar will continue on Tuesday with a venue tour of Harbin and will conclude on Wednesday with a trip by high-speed train to Yabuli for the snow sports.