The Chinese city of Changchum has won the right to host the 6th
Winter Asian Games in 2007 while Beirut will hold the event in
2009, the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) announced.
It
will be the first time the Middle East has hosted an international
winter sports event.
Changchum got the Games in 2007 ahead of Beirut on the agreement
that the event would be held again in two years instead of the
usual four, the OCA said.
Beirut's successful bid is seen as a new sign of the country's
attempt to shake off the legacy of its conflict-stricken past and
rebuild its tourist industry. In 2000 it hosted the Asian Cup
football tournament.
The solution was reached after the only other bidding city for
2007, Tehran, pulled out of the race.
OCA secretary general Abdul Muttaleb Ahmad said earlier this year
that Lebanon planned to use a mix of existing ski facilities and to
build new skating facilities.
Lebanon has some skiing in the Souf mountains but is not
established as an international venue.
Aomori in Japan plays host to the 5th Winter Games in February next
year. The 43-member OCA held their General Assembly in the South
Korean port city of Busan where the 14th Asian Games run until
October 14.
The OCA will hold its next meeting in Kuwait in January.
(China
Daily October 4, 2002)