The design proposal for Zhangjiakou Olympic Center from Beijing Institute of Architectural Design. (Photo/Beijing Times)

The design plan for the venue of the 2022 Winter Olympics has been officially selected from five candidate schemes by the planning department of the city of Zhangjiakou. After four months of online voting, the plan proposed by the Beijing Institute of Architectural Design, titled “Energetic Snow and Ice,” won by over 80,000 votes.

The Zhangjiakou government and Beijing Institute of Architectural Design held a contract signing ceremony on April 22.

Beijing won the bid to host the 2022 Winter Olympic Games at the 128th International Olympic Committee session in Kuala Lumpur on July 31, 2015. Zhangjiakou will serve as a co-host city, thanks to its status as a famous winter sports destination near Beijing. 

The planed Zhangjiakou Olympic Center covers an area of 50 hectares. It features a total floor area of 270,000 square meters, including a 50,000-seat stadium, a 10,000-seat gymnasium, a 3,000-seat natatorium, a 6,000-seat speed skating stadium, and a training center for ping pong, badminton and other similar sports. 

According to the Beijing Institute of Architectural Design, the design has not yet been finalized. The institute will further polish the plan in order to make it more economical. The plan includes turning Zhangjiakou into an ice and snow theme park to attract more people to participate in winter sports.