Xi encourages Chinese athletes to strive for excellence at Beijing 2022

Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, visits a winter sports training base in Beijing, capital of China, Jan. 4, 2022. Xi inspected the preparations for the 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in Beijing on Tuesday. (Xinhua/Yan Yan)

BEIJING, Jan. 5 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping has encouraged the country's athletes to work hard for excellence at the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks during his visit to an ice and snow sports training base in Beijing on Tuesday.

Xi inspected some high-tech training facilities like wind tunnel and 6-DOF (six degrees of freedom) at the training base, learning about how Chinese athletes train and recover from injuries with the help of technological innovations.

"Only those who withstand the freezing cold could enjoy the fragrance of plum blossom," Xi quoted a poem to encourage the athletes to cherish the precious opportunity after years of preparations for sporting excellence.

He also wished them good luck at Beijing 2022.

Tuesday marked the one-month countdown to the 2022 Winter Olympics.