TIANJIN — After a temporary closure of the Chinese Lunar New Year holiday, the Samaranch Memorial has just reopened, coinciding with the first anniversary of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.
Many were fascinated by a flaming Olympic torch called Flying, symbol of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, which is displayed at the monument.
The monument, in the northern Chinese port city of Tianjin, is committed to spreading the winter Olympic spirit and selling winter sports in China, according to its founder, Wu Ching-kuo.
Established in 2013, the monument is the only place in the legal world through Samaranch’s circle of relatives and approved by the International Olympic Committee to commemorate former IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch. It houses most of Samaranch’s Olympic collection.
In an exhibition focused on Samaranch’s life, visitors can revel in his fondness for Floorball, a game promoted through China’s General Sports Administration for southern cities where ice and snow games are not easily accessible.
During the IOC presidency of Samaranch, China effectively won the bid for the 2008 Summer Olympics, while his son Juan Antonio Samaranch Jr. participated in the arrangements for the 2022 Winter Olympics.
“Samaranch would be pleased to see Beijing as a ‘double Olympic city. ‘Therefore, the two torches of the two Olympics were lit here for him,” Wu from Taiwan said.
According to Wu, Beijing has once again presented the unforgettable world Olympic Games that show the sportsmanship of the Chinese people.
The Winter Olympics were a wonderful sporting occasion and a mirror image of China’s aspiration to build a network with a long shared path for humanity, Wu said.
The Beijing Winter Olympics sparked the enthusiasm of many Chinese for ice and snow sports and ushered in a new era of winter sports in the country.
“In recent years, I have noticed many newly built high-end ski resorts in China. Winter sports have grown in popularity, with more than 300 million Chinese practicing them since Beijing won the bid to host the 2022 Olympics,” Wu said.
The monument is committed to popularizing ice and snow sports based on Olympic values, said Zhang Xiuli, deputy director of the monument. He organized a series of online and offline activities, adding a Beijing 2022 Olympic Torch Relay display, to understand the Olympic spirit.
Zhang says the COVID-19 pandemic, the monument introduced a number of online displays on social media platforms.
“The monument will continue to publicize the culture of the Winter Olympics and winter sports,” Zhang added.