The next Paralympic Winter Games will be held in Beijing in March 2022. They will kick off on Friday 4 March and run for nine days, closing on Sunday 13 March.
Beijing will become the first city in the world to host both a summer and winter edition of the Paralympic Games, having hosted the Summer Paralympic Games in 2008. Several venues that were used in the 2008 Paralympic Games will be reused for the 2022 Paralympic Winter Games as part of the Beijing Organizing Committee’s Sustainability Plan.
The venues for the Paralympic Winter Games will be divided into three zones, or clusters: Beijing, Yanqing, and Zhangjiakou.
Here is a look at the venues where you will be able to watch the Paralympic Winter Games in 2022.
Beijing Zone
Located in central Beijing, this cluster of venues will host the ice sports: Wheelchair curling and Para ice hockey. It will also play host to the opening and closing ceremonies of the Winter Paralympics.
The National Stadium – “The Bird’s Nest”
Also known as “The Bird’s Nest” due to its unique design, this iconic stadium hosted the opening and closing ceremonies of the Beijing 2008 Paralympics, as well as the athletics competitions.
While no sporting competitions will take place at the venue during the 2022 Paralympic Winter Games, the Bird’s Nest will once again be the site of the opening and closing ceremonies of the Winter Paralympics.
National Aquatics Centre – the “Ice Cube”
Another iconic venue from the 2008 Paralympics that will be repurposed for 2022 is the National Aquatics Centre. In 2008, the National Aquatics Centre hosted all the Para swimming events and had already earned its nickname “The Water Cube after hosting all the swimming and diving events at the 2008 Olympic Games.
For the Paralympic Winter Games, the Water Cube has been transformed into the “Ice Cube” in preparation for the Wheelchair curling competitions.
Following the 2022 Winter Paralympics, the multi-purpose venue will continue to be used for both winter and summer sports, switching between the two depending on the season.
National Indoor Stadium
Nicknamed “The Fan” due to its design that resembles a traditional Chinese folding fan, the National Indoor Stadium was built for the 2008 Olympics where it hosted rhythmic gymnastics, trampoline, and handball as well as the Paralympic Games where the Wheelchair basketball was contested.
At the Paralympic Winter Games, the National Indoor Stadium will host the Para ice hockey competition where a total of eight teams will be competing, with the USA looking to win a fourth consecutive gold medal.
Beijing Olympic and Paralympic Village
The Olympic and Paralympic Village for the Beijing zone will predominantly house athletes competing in the ice sports at Beijing 2022. The Village facilities will include 2,300 beds for athletes and officials travelling to the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.
Following the conclusion of the Winter Olympics and Paralympics, the health and intelligence-themed village will become public housing open for rent.
Yanqing Zone
Located 75 kilometres northwest of Beijing’s city centre, Yanqing is a mountainous suburb of China’s capital filled with hot springs, national parks, ski resorts, and the Badaling section of the Great Wall of China. Yanqing’s Paralympic venue will stage the Para alpine skiing events including downhill, slalom, giant slalom, super-G and super combined.
This is where New Zealand’s three Paralympians will be based as they look to compete across the five disciplines in Beijing.
National Alpine Ski Centre
Situated in the Xiaohaituo Mountain Area in northwest Yanqing, the National Alpine Ski Centre is made up of seven courses, with the largest vertical drop reaching 900 meters.
The venue – which will continue to be used for international competitions and athlete training following the Winter Olympics and Paralympics – has a seating capacity of 5,000 and a standing capacity of 3,500 for spectators.
Organisers of the Beijing Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games have used 290 snow cannons to prepare the mountains at the Ski Centre for both Games.
Yanqing Olympic and Paralympic Village
The Yanqing Olympic and Paralympic Village is designed according to the cultural characteristics of mountain villages in northern China, highlighting the characteristics of Chinese culture and environmental protection, as well as the athlete-centred design concept. The site will accommodate 1,430 athletes and team officials during the Winter Olympics and Paralympics.
Zhangjiakou Zone
Zhangjiakou is a popular Chinese ski destination approximately 180 kilometres northwest of Beijing. The newly constructed Beijing-Zhangjiakou intercity railway will transfer guests between all three venue clusters for the Winter Olympics and Paralympics in just one hour. Zhangjiakou’s venues will stage three of the six sports that are being contested in the Paralympic Winter Games – Para snowboard, Para cross-country skiing and Para biathlon.
National Biathlon Centre
The National Biathlon Centre, located in Zhangjiakou City in north China’s Hebei Province, will stage the Para biathlon and Para cross-country competitions at the Beijing Paralympic Winter Games.
Following the Winter Paralympics, the centre will be used by the Chinese national team for training, and as a tourist resort.
Genting Snow Park
The Genting Snow Park is an existing ski resort and will be the home of the Para snowboard competition during Beijing 2022.
The park has two separate venues – Park A and Park B – each with the capacity to hold 7,500 spectators. For the Paralympic Winter Games, Park B will be used to host the snowboard-cross and banked slalom events.
The next Paralympic Winter Games
Following the conclusion of Beijing Paralympic Winter Games, all attention for winter Para athletes will turn to Italy where Milano Cortina will host the next edition of the Winter Olympics and Paralympics in 2026.
The Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games will be held from 6 to 15 March 2026.
