As March begins, major ski resorts and venues for ice and snow carnivals in Liaoning shut down one after another, but the passion of ice and snow sports enthusiasts remains undiminished. They either switch to indoor ice rinks and ski halls or travel to other provinces and cities to continue experiencing the speed and excitement brought by ice and snow sports.
At such venues in Shenyang as the ice rinks of Mixc and Heping District People’s Fitness Center, and the ski hall of Fengtian Xuelehui, crowds continue to pour in, signing up for popular figure skating, speed skating, ice hockey, and skiing training camps. Ice and snow sports become increasingly popular in the Liaoshen area, as the benefits of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics continue to be felt, and Liaoning’s bid for the 2028 National Winter Games continues to boost ice and snow sports.
Lin Zengqiang, the general manager of Wanfeng Tonghua Ski Resort in Jilin, tells reporters that the main customers here are skiers from Liaoning. “They account for more than 50%. The main customers of major ski resorts in Jilin all come from Liaoning. And Liaoning’s bid for the National Winter Games is exciting news for us.”
The ice and snow sports and industry in Liaoning continue to heat up, with the help of the Beijing Winter Olympics and Liaoning’s bid for the National Winter Games. During the 7-day Spring Festival holiday in 2023, 31 ski resorts in Liaoning received 340,000 visitors, an increase of 80% on a year-on-year basis, with total operating revenue of 35.46 million yuan, increasing year-on-year by 95%. The maximum number of visitors received in a single day reached 70,000, and the overall benefits were 2.5 times that of the same period last year.
During the just-concluded snow season, the Liaoning Provincial Sports Bureau has organized and guided the cities in the province to hold more than 100 ice and snow events during the New Year’s Day and Spring Festival, using the “Liaoning Ice and Snow Games for All” and “Millions of Liaoning Citizens in Ice and Snow Sports” as platforms. According to statistics, during the two festivals, the number of people participating in ice and snow activities in Shenyang alone reached 300,000.
While promoting mass ice and snow activities, Liaoning has focused on organizing two events this year, aiming to create high-quality events and build the brands. In February of this year, Liaoning held its first Liaoning Mass Skiing Challenge, with nearly 400 skiers from across the country participating, setting a new record for the scale of skiing events in Liaoning. The entire competition was live-streamed online, with over 2 million clicks. In addition, Liaoning also hosted the “Revitalization Cup” Shenyang Juvenile Ice Hockey Invitational, creating an independent IP brand event for juvenile ice hockey in the Liaoshen area. Over 500 coaches and athletes from 30 teams from Belarus and eight cities in China gathered in Shenyang to join in the ice and snow event.
Liaoning will continue to hold various ice and snow events with rich content and diverse forms and exert sustained and precise efforts in mass projects, consolidating and expanding the national achievement of “engaging 300 million people in ice and snow sports”, and striving to achieve the goal of “engaging 10 million people in ice and snow sports” as soon as possible.