BEIJING: Beijing’s promise to host a streamlined Winter Olympics next year has materialized in a big way with the completion of a shared media center integrating operations for the press and broadcasters.
With less than eight months until the 2022 Winter Olympics open in Beijing, the Games’ organizing committee on Sunday delivered the international broadcast center project, part of the newly built main media center, to Olympic Broadcasting Services, marking a key milestone in the Chinese capital’s preparations for the winter sports extravaganza.
Built in northern Beijing’s Olympic Park, the Beijing 2022 media center, which was completed last month, will combine functional areas for the international broadcast center and the main press center under one roof for the first time in Olympic history as part of Chinese organizers’ efforts to reduce construction costs while optimizing Gamestime operations.
At previous editions of the Games, journalists and photographers used to work at an independent venue separated from the broadcast center, with two sets of power supplies, transportation and logistic services.
Beijing 2022’s plan to use shared work space, services and technological support echoed the International Olympic Committee’s call to cut operational costs for future hosts, highlighted in the Olympic Agenda 2020 and New Norm reform proposals.
“Using the integrated main media center instead of two separate buildings will help cut costs, save space and improve efficiency,” Xu Zhijun, the Beijing 2022 organizing committee’s deputy secretary-general, said during Sunday’s handover ceremony.
“Following the central government’s guiding principles of hosting ‘streamlined, safe and splendid’ Games, we will spare no effort in the final delivery.”
– The Daily Mail-China Daily News exchange item
