One year on, Beijing Winter Olympics leaves lasting imprint on Chinese society

Winter sports spur development & social benefits

During this year's Spring Festival holiday, the Beijing-Zhangjiakou high-speed railway saw rising passenger numbers, with many heading to the ski resorts in Zhangjiakou's Chongli.

"In addition to Beijing residents, many passengers are skiing enthusiasts from southern areas such as Shanghai and Shenzhen," said Wang Xiaoyong, head of Qinghe Railway Station in Beijing.

As expected, major ski resorts in the capital Beijing and neighboring Zhangjiakou were crowded during the seven-day Chinese New Year holiday.

"My colleagues and I worked eight to 10 hours every day during the Spring Festival," said Zhang Chunming, a ski instructor at Beijing's Jundushan Ski Resort. "The coaches were so oversubscribed that many beginners had to wait for over two hours for a lesson."

Thanks to various skiing and skating activities, Beijing's Yanqing district received around 758,000 tourist visits during this Spring Festival holiday, according to Ye Dahua, head of the Yanqing district government.

This "ski fever" is palpable around China. As of February 2, the three largest ski resorts in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region were visited by 217,200 people during this snow season, compared with 205,000 over the same period last year. In the meantime, consumption in the resorts has seen an even stronger comeback as this year's revenue reached over 70.91 million yuan (about $10.51 million), up 128 percent from last year.

In Northeast China's Heilongjiang province, Harbin Ice and Snow World welcomed more than 30,000 winter sports enthusiasts per day during the week-long holiday. Ski resorts at Changbai Mountain in Northeast China's Jilin province also experienced a massive surge in arrivals.

A growing number of people in China's southern provinces, where ice and snow are rarely seen, have shown their enthusiasm towards winter sports as well.

During the Chinese New Year holiday, the ski resort in Quanzhou county, South China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, was packed with people eager to get the thrill of winter sports.

The booming interest for winter sports also fueled a lot of opportunities for businesses in related fields. Ski equipment and gear sales doubled year-on-year during January on JD.com, one of China's largest e-commerce platforms.

Wang Linghua and his wife Long Jing were busy at work even on Chinese New Year Eve at the Aoshan Ski Resort in Taibai county, Northwest China's Shaanxi province.

Wang said that many nearby villagers usually work at the Aoshan resort during the ski season and switch to farming when the snow season ends.