Bach praises China's preparations for 2022 Winter Olympics

Beijing, June 5 (IANS) The president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Tuesday took part in the second day of the PyeongChang 2018 Debrief at the headquarters of the Beijing Organising Committee for the 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

Thomas Bach had also met Chinese vice-prime minister Sun Chunlan, also in-charge of sports and culture in the government, on Monday and discussed the country's preparations for hosting the Winter Olympics in 2022, reports Efe.

"The IOC is pleased that Beijing 2022 intends to use the Games as a catalyst to improve the health of the population, tackle environmental issues and promote sustainable economic growth in the region. These are all objectives in the spirit of Olympic Agenda 2020," Bach had said on Monday, reported the official Xinhua news agency.

At the debriefing session, that began on Monday and is aimed at sharing expertise, experience, and best practices for hosting the Games, Bach had lauded Beijing's efforts to learn from past Olympics and re-use facilities built for the 2008 Summer Olympics.

The German official highlighted that 11 sports facilities built for Beijing 2008 Olympics will be reused in 2022, including the iconic Bird's Nest Stadium, which will host the opening and closing ceremonies, and the Water Cube aquatic centre, set to be the venue for the curling competition.