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Harbin wins bid for 2009 Winter Universiade Harbin went wild on Monday the moment George Killian, president of the International University Sports Federation (FISU), uttered the name "Harbin" in Innsbrook, Austria.
"It's a great success, as well as a huge opportunity for Harbin, one of the largest cities in Northeast China with a population of nearly 10 million," said Shi Zhongxin, Harbin mayor and vice-president of the bid committee. The event will be the highest-level comprehensive sports competition Harbin has ever hosted since it held the third Asian Winter Games in 1996. After losing its bid for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in August 2002, Harbin has now realized its dream of hosting an international winter athletic event, which it hopes will pave the way for a bid for the 2014 Winter Olympic Games. "Hosting the Winter Universiade is necessary for bidding for the Winter Olympic Games again," said Zhao Yinggang, director of the Heilongjiang Provincial Sports Bureau. "It will be a bonus in helping develop winter sports in China and the experience of organizing such an international sports event will be valuable for us in future preparations." According to Zhao, after losing the bid for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games, the Heilongjiang Provincial Sports Bureau and Heilongjiang Provincial Education Bureau decided to bid for the Universiade in order to be better prepared for a new attempt at the Winter Olympic Games. "The visiting inspection delegation led by President Killian was greatly impressed by our work," Zhao said. Winning the bid campaign will not only bring benefits to the city, but also a new opportunity to promote winter sports. "The hosting rights mean chances to motivate coaches and athletes," said Li Ming, chief of the Heilongjiang Provincial Ice Sports Training Centre. "The Universiade will offer us a wide stage." National sports officials agree as well. "The hosting of the Universiade will certainly boost the winter sports among university students in China," said Wang Yitao, director of the National Winter Sports Administrative Centre. "We hope students will become the main force of out winter sports reserve. With the co-operation of the Ministry of Education, which is in charge of the Chinese delegation at the Universiade, we are confident that winter sports in China will move ahead much faster." With the winning of the rights to the games, the organizers say they will do their best to put on a quality event. "We will try to stage a Winter Universiade that is the best in history, with the largest participation and the highest-level of organization," said Cheng Youdong, vice-governor of Heilongjiang Province. An organizing committee for the Universiade will be set up soon, according to Cheng. "This will be a test for the economic strength of Harbin," he said. A detailed plan to revamp and upgrade the existing sports facilities and venues have been mapped out. The current four stadiums and five training centres in the city can basically meet the requirements of FISU. And the largest ski centre, the Yabuli Ski site in the Harbin suburbs, where most of the competitions may be held, will be renovated. Its slopes will be extended and more buildings and houses will be built to increase accommodations. The bid committee had submitted finance guarantee to the FISU and the city vowed to give full financial support for the preparatory work of the Universiade. An estimated US dollar 1.3 billionwill be invested for the infrastructure construction and sports facility renovation, and another US dollar 20 million will be allotted as the direct expense for organizing the universiade, reports Heilongjiang Daily The FISU announced at the same time yesterday that Belgrade, capital of Serbia and Montenegro, will host the 25th Summer Unverisade, also to take place in 2009. The 2005 Winter Universiade starts from today to January 22 in Innsbruck. |
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