National Aquatics Center resumes operations with sustainability drive

By Zhu Bochen
0 Comment(s)Print E-mail China.org.cn, January 11, 2023
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The National Aquatics Center in Beijing has returned to full operations after China's latest optimization of COVID-19 response, seeing many people trying their hand at water and ice sports at the dual-Olympic venue during the recent New Year's Day holiday.

The venue's Ice Sports Center and merchandise store were among the first facilities to receive guests, and its standard ice rink has been open for skating and relevant training courses as of Dec. 30, 2022. Prior to the reopening, the venue carried out maintenance inspection and epidemic precautions in accordance with the arrangement of local authorities. Its curling rink is also set to soon be reopened for public use.

In addition, the venue has resumed visitor services since Jan. 7 and will organize Winter Olympic-themed sports camps starting Jan. 9. The camps will introduce teenagers to curling and ice skating through professional coaching and offer a glimpse of the stories behind Beijing 2022 as well as futuristic technologies applied during the Games.

In terms of water sports, the venue reopened its Henry Fok Ying Tung Hall (Warm-up Pool) to the public on Dec. 31, 2022, and also resumed various fitness and training swimming, dancing, and table tennis courses.

The venue's swimming facilities have seen digital upgrades in recent years. Swimmers can now make online reservations and claim and return their pool pass wristband using self-help services and gain pool access via identity authentication technologies.

Last August, the venue hosted the 2022 Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Swimming Open Tournament and the Beijing All-people Swimming Competition. With more than 1,300 athletes participating, the two-day event attracted nearly 20,000 on-site spectators. The event demonstrated that, after Beijing 2022, the dual-Olympic venue can still host both water and ice sports events with its perfect temperature, humidity, light, and sound systems.

Following the optimized COVID-19 response by local authorities, the National Aquatics Center will continue to strengthen its ventilation and disinfection systems, implementing online reservations and conducting body temperature checks before guests enter the venue, where they must wear masks at all times when not exercising. Visitors with pandemic-related symptoms shall be denied access.

During Beijing 2022, the National Aquatics Center served as an Olympic-standard curling venue by building a convertible ice rink on what used to be a swimming pool, presenting the world with China's solution to a sustainable dual-Olympic venue. In the post-Games era, it will make the most of its Winter Olympic legacy and is now poised to boost both water and ice sports among the public.

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