Winter Olympics to showcase high-tech features alongside sporting prowess

The Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics to be held in February will feature advanced technologies in the construction of venues and infrastructure, environmental protection, smart services and broadcast sectors, to provide convenience to athletes and the audience.

Technology will be a highlight of the Winter Olympics and has been applied to venue construction, including sleigh tracks, the National Ski Jumping Center and the National Speed Skating Oval, said Wu Yuanbin. The director-general of the Department of Science and Technology for Social Development of the Ministry of Science and Technology was speaking at a news conference held last week.

The ice tracks at the National Speed Skating Oval, also known as the Ice Ribbon, have a lightweight roof in a saddle-shaped cable-net structure, which uses one-fourth of the steel of a traditional roof.

Beijing National Stadium, also known as the Bird's Nest, used applications of the internet of things and artificial intelligence technologies to become a digital and low-carbon sports venue.

The organizers also strengthened technical support for weather forecasts, operational command and medical security.

The design and construction of the Beijing Winter Olympic venues realize the perfect integration of science, art and culture, Wu said.

He cited the design of the National Ski Jumping Center in Zhangjiakou, Hebei province, as an example. It was inspired by the traditional Chinese auspicious ornament ruyi, which is S-shaped and a symbol of good luck.

Eco-friendliness is another key concept of the Beijing Winter Olympics, said Yu Hong, director of the Beijing 2022 organizing committee's technology department.

To achieve its carbon neutrality goal, wind, solar and other green energy of the Zhangbei area in Hebei province will be used to power the venues during the Games, Yu said.

The committee has decided to replace Freon with carbon dioxide as a cleaner and more efficient refrigerant at four ice sports competition and training venues to reduce energy consumption, waste and carbon emissions.

The new system has helped maintain the temperature of the ice surface within a range of 0.5 degrees and can achieve almost zero carbon emissions, according to the organizing committee.

The venues also use a cold-hot integrated supply system to recycle refrigeration residual heat, with the energy efficiency improved by 30-40 percent.

According to Yu, 80 hydrogen fuel cell vehicles have been tested at the Zhangjiakou area.

During the Games, there will be around 700 hydrogen fuel cell vehicles as transport at the Yanqing and Zhangjiakou areas. Even the domestic torch relay of the Beijing Winter Olympics will use hydrogen fuel.

A 5G network covers all the venues as well as the roads and rail lines connected to them, including the Beijing-Zhangjiakou high-speed railway.

New broadcasting technologies, such as 8K ultrahigh definition livestreaming and 360-degree instant replays, will be used on a large scale at the Games.