In this issue of Leigh Interview – Snow Dialogue 2022, you'll explore another exciting sport, sledding and snowmobiling! This may sound strange to us, but imagine skateboarding we played as kids and combined it with the thrilling movie Fast and Furious. What can we think of? Formula One (F1) on snow and ice, i.e. with a luge and a steel-framed bobsleigh (swooping ice skid). Today we have invited mr. Ivo Ferriani, president of the International Snowmobile Federation, an expert in this field.
Li Zhang, Vice President of Asia Data Group
Hello, Ivo! It's been a while since we last met in Beijing. How are you doing in Switzerland? Welcome to our interview! Today we have the honor to invite you as a guest speaker to join us about the International Snowmobile Federation (IBSF), bobsleigh and bobsleigh sports, and our Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. Just now, I described the sport as F1 on the snow for our audience, which is still very strange to them. As an old friend, I know you have a very diverse and deep background in bobsleigh and bobsleigh, starting as an athlete and coach, then as a sports officer, and now as IBSF President. So, no one is more qualified to talk about sleds and bobshoes than you. Can you tell us more about the sport and how it's growing around the world?
President of the International Snowmobile Federation Ivo Ferriani
It's been 99 years since the sport officially emerged, and next year we will celebrate a very important centenary, which is an important step for us, because few sports federations have such a long history. For us, it is important to trace the roots and celebrate the origins, but at the same time, we must slide into the future and carry forward. So our next step is to move the sport forward, which is my motto when I took office, and it was inevitable that we would bring the sport to China, because we are far from well-known in China. I would like to emphasize in particular that Chinese athletes only began training 4 years ago, and there was no national team at that time, and now China has won the Steel Frame Snowmobile World Cup, and has also been on the podium in the snowmobile competition, which means that at the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, China is a strong contender for medals in many sports, of course, I believe that athletes from all over the world will fight for medals, but China has started from scratch, and now has achieved a huge leap, which also means that in the future, Chinese athletes can show China's strong strength in the Winter Olympic Games and the ability and enterprising spirit of Chinese athletes. Finally, I will also apply my knowledge of China to two- or four-person bobsleigh, which has achieved great results in this sport, and I predict that in the next 4, 8, 10 years, China will become one of the global leaders in the sport.
Sounds promising! Thank you for your expectations for the future and for us. We are also looking forward to that day and seeing our Chinese team perform well in the Olympic Games. Speaking of the Olympic Games, I know you also have a title, a member of the Coordination Committee of the 24th Beijing Winter Olympics in 2022, and I think you must know our preparations well, and have been to the National Bobsleigh Center, where China built the first bobsleigh and bobsleigh track for the Beijing 2022 Olympic Games. How do you see the preparations for the Beijing 2022 Olympics compared to the previous Olympics you have participated in, and what are your expectations for this year's Olympic Games?
Indeed, I am a member of the Coordination Committee, and this is the first time in history that the preparations for the Beijing Winter Olympics have been completed well, and the preparations for the sports I am responsible for, as well as many other sports, have been well completed a year in advance. It was a beautiful sight than ever, organized and full of energy, with all the problems that arose quickly resolved. We have also done a very good job in terms of track construction, and we can't transfer these to Europe, because China has used completely different tools to construct a high-quality, well-structured mountain dragon-like track (Snow Dragon), and the quality of the track is also very superior, about the preparations for the Winter Olympics in Beijing, Yanqing and Zhangjiakou, I can say this for the athletes.
Of course, there is also a very important work after that, that is, the legacy of the Olympic Games. Legacy planning is important because as soon as the event is over, someone needs to take care of the venues, and the owners of the venues have completed the important work of designing the venues and have been preparing for future work ever since.
Thank you, Ivo. In fact, you have already mentioned the next question I want to ask. The reuse of Olympic venues is a manifestation of heritage. As you mentioned earlier, we very much hope to host more IBSF races at the National Bobsleigh Center after the Beijing 2022 Olympics. So, apart from the venues, what are your expectations and suggestions for the other legacies of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics?
The legacy is not just about the venues, it's about the people. If the right people are not put in place to manage the venue, the venue will eventually disappear or be abandoned. While attaching importance to maintenance, the operation of the project after the event is also very important, few cities in the world can use the brand logo of the Olympic Five Rings, while Beijing, China, has two such honors, one is the Summer Olympic Games, one is the Winter Olympic Games, becoming the first summer and winter double Olympic city in history.
The track is not just about serving athletes, we can also carry out the "Taxi Tour" program, where full-time navigators lead tourists to visit the Olympic venues and let them sit on the car and experience the style of the venues in the summer, which is what we can do. With such an experience, it will bring more attention and tourists will drive the economy, because the Olympic Games will not only promote the development of sports, but also create potential tourism value. In my hometown of Turin, for example, before hosting the Olympics, it was only considered an industrial city that produced Fiat cars, and now Fiat (influence) is almost gone, but we still have a lot of tourists, because we were the original capital of Italy
I would say that Beijing will be boosted again, and the surrounding towns will also be boosted, of course, Chinese cities are much larger than European cities, but they will all develop better under the influence of the Olympic Rings brand, so I think this is a good thing for the heritage.
That's right, Ivo! Very vivid and detailed examples! After the last time we met in Rome, I toured your hometown of Turin, where we can see everywhere the impact of the Olympic Games on the host city. Innsbruck is another great example! A more specific question about the heritage of the venue, to me, the sled and bobsleigh venues seem to have been built for professionals and seem to be very technical. After the Olympics, can we use them for certain public purposes, such as leisure and recreational sports? Do you have any past experiences or suggestions to share with us?
There is a good example of the use of Olympic venues, especially bobsleigh tracks, after the race, such as the Venue of the 1992 Winter Olympics in France, the La Plagne Ski Resort in Albertville, the Innsbruck you just mentioned, or another natural circuit, St. Moritz, and the leisure and entertainment tourism project is more attractive to people than the sports, because there are buses that pick up tourists to and from the La Plagne Ski Resort every day, and some people just want to experience a recreational sport. The skiing experience is part of a package purchased for skiing in France. In the summer, the project is different, it is a slide made of rubber, which makes people slide down the pipe like soap, and people like this project and pay for it, which is one aspect of the future development of the sliding sports center venue.
Thank you for giving us an example of how these special venues can be used as a legacy to popularize sport and generate economic benefits. Ivo, when we talk about the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, there is another legacy, and that is our International Winter Sports Expo (WWSE). As you know in the background, its birth was the result of China's commitments to the international community when it bid for the Olympic Games in 2015. First of all, thank you very much for your participation and support over the years. With our joint efforts, the Winter Expo has now developed into one of the world's largest ice and snow events. In the future, it will also continue to exist as a legacy of the Beijing 2022 Olympic Games. So, as an Olympic legacy, what advice do you have for its future development?
When I first attended the Winter Expo in China, I heard good news that the Chinese government wants to lead 300 million people to ice and snow. This figure exceeds the total population of Europe, which is a very remarkable undertaking, because it means opening up a whole new market, so it is very necessary for us to fully promote all aspects of the work, the tourism and sports industries related to the ice and snow industry are just getting started, and we must focus on promoting, and then we also have the opportunity to hold the World Sports Congress Forum in China to promote the development of sports once again. Not only in the winter, but in the winter and summer, I think China will also have the opportunity to show the world its strength, including the strength of cultivating excellent athletes, but also to show the charm for tourists, tourism is not only about the Great Wall of history, but also about sports and enjoying leisure life, so I think China should work hard in this regard. Let that momentum continue after the event.
Indeed! We will certainly maintain the good momentum we have achieved and, as you just pointed out, firmly continue to host the WWSE after the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. In addition, we will also build a heritage from a social, cultural and economic perspective, and promote and promote the development of winter sports in China and the world.
Well, Ivo, thank you for sharing your interesting experience and insightful advice with us. Time flies so fast that I have to say goodbye to you for the time being and look forward to seeing you soon after you arrive in Beijing!
Thank you, and finally I would like to say that the epidemic will soon be over and we need to be prepared for the future.
Good! That concludes our interview today. Thank you for your attention. Here is "Leigh Interview - 2022 Ice and Snow Industry Dialogue"! Good bye!
