21 September 2020, marks 500 days until the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 begin. In Beijing and the surrounding area, a series of events were held to mark the occasion.
The highlight was a ceremony at the Badaling Great Wall. There, musical performances took centre stage, with an Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 paper cutting art exhibition and activities with Chinese Olympic Rights-Holding Broadcaster CCTV also taking place.
Earlier this month, as part of the 500 Days to Go activities, an aircraft was wrapped in Olympic-themed branding at Beijing Capital International Airport. The aircraft, named "Winter Olympic Ice and Snow", bears the emblems of the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 and images of the mascots, Bing Dwen Dwen and Shuey Rhon Rhon. Senior leaders from the People’s Government of Beijing Municipality, the Civil Aviation Administration of China, Beijing 2022 and from other organisations joined its inaugural journey from Beijing to Chengdu. During the flight, Sha Tong, a host from China Media Group, and world champion figure skaters Pang Qing and Tong Jian conducted interactive Olympic Winter Games quizzes with passengers. Once they landed, the figure skating partners joined the Beijing 2022 team and 50 local leaders for a winter sports-themed class that encouraged young people to participate in ice and snow sports.
In addition, Beijing 2022 and the IOC have published a Chinese language version of the Olympic Values Education Programme (OVEP). This resource promotes the Olympic values and facilitates the sustainable development of Olympic education, providing students with various educational activities and teachers with relevant tools, as well as practical training.
Over the coming days, further activities around the 500 Days to Go milestone will take place. From 20 September to mid-October, Beijing 2022 will undertake a lecture tour, visiting a number of government agencies and Beijing 2022 sponsors to both showcase the progress being made with the Games and spread further knowledge about the Winter Olympics.
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