China's Winter Sports Ascent and Strategy

China isn’t just skiing for sport—it’s skiing for strength. In this episode, we explore how winter sports have become a strategic national project, turbocharged by the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and backed by massive state investment. Nearly 700 ski centers have sprung up across the country, including enormous indoor slopes that run year-round, helping China win medals, boost public fitness, and spark domestic tourism in unexpected places. From the naturalization of star athletes like Eileen Gu to ski resorts rising in politically sensitive regions such as Xinjiang, winter sports have become tools of prestige, health policy, and economic ambition. What looks like leisure on snow is, in China, a carefully groomed vision of national power.https://www.economist.com/china/2024/01/04/millions-of-chinese-have-embraced-skiing