No business like snow business

With yet another Winter Olympics just around the corner, the legacy of Beijing 2022 lives on, with China's public involvement and industry growth in ice and snow sports driving on with consistent momentum.

Backed up by surging public interest and robust market demand, international governing bodies, business executives and event promoters remain bullish on the potential of China's winter sports industry, even with the global focus having shifted to Italy for the Milano-Cortina 2026 Games, which will open in less than four months.

As the 2025-26 winter fast approaches, the bustling scenes of slope-shaping, snowmaking and staff training at five major ski resorts in Zhangjiakou, Hebei province, a co-host city of Beijing 2022, indicate an early-season boom, as resort owners race against each other to open for business as early as the end of this month.

The post-Olympics business slump that some industry analysts warned of has not materialized, with China's continuous hosting of elite international events driving strong growth in the country's winter tourism and outdoor leisure sectors. This growth has participants of the 2025 World Winter Sports Expo stoked about the untapped business opportunities.

Giovanni Malago, president of the Milano-Cortina 2026 organizing committee, said the greater awareness in winter sports on the global stage, impacted by Beijing 2022, has set the tone for another successful gala in Italy.

"The handover from Beijing 2022 to Milano-Cortina 2026 is far more than a symbolic gesture," Malago said in a video message presented at the opening ceremony of the expo, which concluded its 10th edition at west Beijing's Shougang Industrial Park on Sunday.

"We have maintained an ongoing dialogue with the Chinese organizing committee and relevant institutions, allowing us to learn from their organizational model and gain invaluable experience and insights during our own preparations," said the IOC member.

"With significant investment and an exceptional increase in public engagement, China is now one of the leading nations in the global winter sports movement. The success of the home Olympics left an important legacy and involved millions of people, especially the younger generations, bringing them closer to winter sports."

The expo, which was launched in 2016 in the build-up to Beijing 2022, hosted over 500 global winter sports brands from manufacturing, service, tourism and resort operation sectors within the fair's 20,000-square-meter exhibition space at Shougang.

Featuring leaders of global winter sports governing bodies and renowned business executives from home and abroad, 200 forums and panel discussions took place at the expo, shedding light on the latest trends in winter sports promotion, technology and operational expertise, which are expected to benefit related businesses in China.

"The leapfrog progress of winter sports in China came down to a national strategy and government support to integrate public involvement in ice and snow sports into a powerful driver of economic growth and regional development," Yu Zaiqing, vice-president of the Chinese Olympic Committee, said in his opening speech at the expo.

According to an industry report released at the expo, the total market value of China's winter sports sector reached 980 billion yuan (about $138 billion) in 2024, and is predicted to exceed 1 trillion yuan by the end of this year, putting it well on course to hit the target of 1.5 trillion yuan by the end of the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30), set by the State Council, China's cabinet.

Data in the report also shows that during the 2024-25 winter season, China recorded 187.5 trillion yuan in revenue from public consumption in winter sports and relevant leisure activities, marking a strong 25 percent year-on-year increase.

Better infrastructure support, such as more high-speed railways connecting resorts with target markets, more indoor all-season venues, and more flexible financial policies in loan approval and tax reduction for small businesses, which were highlighted in a broad industry development guideline issued by the State Council last year, are expected to further facilitate growth.

A newly-built indoor ski resort in Shenzhen, South China's Guangdong province, where it never snows, saw higher-than-expected customer flow during the recent National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival holidays, receiving about 200,000 visitors over its first eight days following its opening on Sept 29, according to venue operators.

As of April this year, China had built 79 large-scale indoor ski resorts, 20 more than the previous year, with plans to open 16 more in the next 12 months, according to the industry report published at the expo.

Johan Eliasch, president of International Ski and Snowboard Federation, said China's active involvement in winter sports popularization will help the promotion of those events reach new frontiers.

"Looking back, the progress has been remarkable, participation in winter sports is growing, new venues and infrastructure are leaving a lasting legacy, and most importantly, a new generation of athletes and fans are embracing snow sports with passion and enthusiasm," said Eliasch, a guest speaker at the expo.

"From the perspective of the FIS, China has played, and will continue to play, a central role on this journey, from the unforgettable Winter Olympic Games in Beijing to the vibrant growth of snow sports across the country, the momentum here is inspiring for all of us."