'Ice City' feels heat of anticipation

A total of over 700 dishes will be on the menus at official Games hotels to cater to the taste buds of the international athletes and officials.

Harbin's readiness and the committee's organizational expertise have impressed the Olympic Council of Asia.

"China has rich experience of organizing multisport events, and Harbin has seized international attention and praise for its professional and efficient preparatory work for the Games," said OCA President Raja Randhir Singh.

"They have the knowledge, the wherewithal and the government support. And they have the experience from the Beijing Winter Olympics in 2022 and also the Hangzhou Asian Games in 2023, which have brought a lot of expertise in organizing international sporting events in China. So, I'm sure we will see a very high-standard Games here in Harbin," said Vinod Kumar Tiwari, the deputy director general of OCA.

To address the challenges of snowy weather, particularly for traffic during the Games, the city has mobilized over 40,000 sanitation workers, deployed 1,700 sets of cleaning machinery and prepared over 4,000 metric tons of eco-friendly snow-melting agent to be ready to keep the main roads and transport hubs near Games venues clean and dry, even in the face of heavy snowfall, according to Harbin's urban management bureau.

"We've done three rounds of snow-clearance drills so far this winter with the efficiency of the staff being very much improved," said Tang Kexin, head of the bureau.

"We will pile up some of the excessive snow in certain areas across the city, though, to make sure that we keep the city's winter characteristics within reach of visitors."

The highly anticipated opening ceremony of the Games, which will take place at the Harbin International Conference, Exhibition and Sports Center, has been rehearsed multiple times under the guidance of chief director Sha Xiaolan, who was also the mastermind of the well-regarded opening and closing ceremonies of the Hangzhou Asian Games in 2023, according to the organizing committee.

Contact the writers at sunxiaochen@chinadaily.com.cn