Chinese athletes are ramping up their preparations for the 2025 Asian Winter Games which will be held in Harbin in northeast China next February, as the event marked its 100-day countdown on Wednesday.
The 9th Asian Winter Games are set to take place in Harbin, capital of China's northernmost province of Heilongjiang, from Feb 7-14 in 2025. Following the Beijing Winter Olympics, this is another major international winter sports event hosted by China.
This event will feature the largest participation in its history, with a total of 34 Olympic committees registered, according to its organizers.
The upcoming Games will feature six sports, 11 disciplines, and a total of 64 events. Notably, mixed doubles curling, ski mountaineering, and synchronized aerials of freestyle skiing will make their debuts at the Asian Winter Games.
The Chinese national team plans to send over 170 athletes to compete in all events. Currently, different sports teams of the national team are selecting their members and forming their squads. As the international winter sports competition cycle for 2024-2025 is underway, these teams will choose their athletes based on their performances in international competitions, regular tests and qualification trials. The selections are expected to be completed by the end of December.
"As for ice sports, Chinese short track speed skaters are currently competing in the Short Track World Tour in Canada, while speed skaters and figure skaters are preparing for the World Cup and Grand Prix events. Regarding snow sports, based on basic skill training and upgrading difficulty levels in the early stages, athletes are working to make the best of their summer training gains in their performances in snow sports," said Yu Haiyan, deputy director of the Winter Sports Management Center, General Administration of Sport of China. The Harbin Games will also serve as an important trial run for Asia's top winter athletes preparing for the Milan 2026 Winter Olympics.
Chinese athletes intensify preparations for 2025 Asian Winter Games
China supports the Security Council in using all options in its toolbox to take further actions for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and Middle East, said Permanent Representative to the United Nations Fu Cong on Tuesday.
Speaking at the UN Security Council Briefing on the Situation in the Middle East, Including the Palestinian Question, Fu said that Gaza and the Middle East as a whole are experiencing worsening dilemma, elusive peace prospects, and a looming all-out war. The Security Council should act immediately on the pressing issues, with a view to promoting ceasefire, saving lives, and restoring peace.
An immediate and permanent ceasefire is the prerequisite for saving lives and preventing further deterioration of the situation, and there is no justification for any delay, said Fu.
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) has been providing relief in accordance with its mandate from the General Assembly. It is the backbone of humanitarian assistance in Gaza. The Israeli Knesset, in total disregard of the strong opposition of the international community, passed two bills in an attempt to restrict and close the UNRWA. China strong condemns it, said Fu.
"Closing the Agency would be a new round of collective punishment of several million of Palestinian refugees in the region, and would severely affect the humanitarian situation, security, and stability in the region. We demand Israel to stop advancing and revoke the relevant bills and ensure the dignity, safety, and facilitation for the work of UN humanitarian agencies, including the UNRWA," said Fu.
The United States has announced that it would reinvigorate ceasefire negotiations. China hopes that the negotiations will not fall into the weird cycle of marking time as it has been seen in the past few months. Nor should they become a pretext for prolonging and expanding the fighting. The relevant diplomatic efforts should not be used as an excuse to obstruct the Council actions. China supports the Security Council in using all options in its toolbox to take further actions for a ceasefire, said Fu.
"In the current context, certain countries are continuing their massive supply of weapons to Israel. Whether such acts would be conducive to realizing the objectives of the Council resolutions or not is a matter that must be taken seriously. We hope that countries concerned will take seriously the grave consequence of their massive supply of weapons and stop fueling the flames of military adventures," said Fu.
China supports Security Council taking further efforts for ceasefire: envoy
