With the Olympic flame extinguished following a farewell party, Beijing capped the 2022 Olympic Winter Games to resounding global acclaim on Sunday for bringing the world together through the power of sports at a challenging time.
As the first major international sporting event held on schedule amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Winter Games concluded in a memorable way after International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach declared its closing, witnessed by President Xi Jinping at the iconic National Stadium in Beijing on Sunday night.
The closing ceremony, which featured artistic performances and athlete parades, brought the curtain down on an extensive display of thrilling sports action, friendship and mutual respect among 2,877 athletes from 91 national and regional Olympic committees at safe and well-organized Games, despite unprecedented challenges amid the pandemic.
During 19 days of outstanding performances on the ice and snow, 17 Olympic records, including two world records, were broken, while gold medals were awarded in a record number of 109 events at the most gender-balanced Winter Games to date, where 45 percent of athletes were female.
Highlighted by breakthroughs in snow sports, the host delegation bagged a national record haul of 15 medals, including nine gold, to finish third in the gold medal standings, its highest ever since China's Winter Olympics debut at the 1980 Lake Placid Games in the United States.
With the world facing common challenges such as the rampaging Omicron variant of coronavirus and geopolitical tensions, the Chinese organizers' relentless efforts to set up an equal stage for athletes to compete fiercely, yet live in peace and respect under one roof in a safe environment, earned appreciation from around the world.
With the successful delivery of the 2022 Games, Beijing has made history as the first city ever to host both summer and winter editions of the Olympics.
Although entering China with concerns about the strict COVID-19 protocols, many athletes have hailed their stay in Beijing as a reassuring experience that helped them focus on the competition. The host's warm hospitality, caring services at the Olympic Villages, exposure to Chinese culture during Spring Festival and traditional Chinese food impressed international athletes, prompting them to post viral videos on social media documenting their stays in Beijing and co-host city Zhangjiakou, Hebei province.
