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Kazakhstan|sport|July 31, 2015 / 04:32 PM
Beijing to host 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympics

AKIPRESS.COM - Olympics Beijing has been chosen to host the 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympics, beating the bid of Kazakhstan's Almaty.

Having hosted the 2008 Olympics, the Chinese capital will be the first city to host both a summer and winter Games, reports BBC.

Beijing and Almaty were considered outsiders when the 2022 bid race opened two years ago.

But after a host of European cities pulled out for political or financial reasons, the Chinese bid narrowly beat Almaty by 44 votes to 40.

The secret ballot held by 85 International Olympic Committee members in Kuala Lumpur was conducted twice, first electronically and then by paper, after it was discovered the electronic system had malfunctioned.

The Games will be divided between the capital and the city of Zhangjiakou - which is 118 miles north-west of Beijing and will host the snow events.

Despite concerns about a lack of natural snow in the mountains, and protests from human rights groups, Beijing had been the clear favourite to win the vote after it successfully hosted the 2008 Summer Olympics.

The high-powered Chinese delegation, which included former NBA star Yao Ming, assured IOC members that Beijing was the safe choice because it had already proved it could stage the Games and said it would take winter sports into the backyard of the world's most populated country.

Olympic skeleton champion Lizzie Yarnold said: "Before 2008 there was a lot of discussion around human rights and awareness around it. I hope that the International Olympic Committee have taken that into consideration and are going to make actual changes this time, rather than just discuss it.

"The venues need to be technically excellent. They need to be Olympic standard for you to bring good performances as athletes. I really hope the IOC will make sure that things are ready for the World Cup races that will have to take place there before the Olympics."

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