China's winter sports run at red-hot white

Ten years ago skiing and snowboarding were niche interests of just a few people in China; 10 years on, they are of interest to millions, and a lifestyle choice for many, primarily because of the Winter Olympics in Beijing last year.

The Games fueled exponential growth in the country's ice and snow industry, with more than 340 million people taking part in some form of winter sports by the end of 2021.

Wu Bin, author of the China Ski Industry White Book, said, "The hosting of the Beijing Winter Olympics has undoubtedly played a vital role in driving the development of China's winter sports, and it has brought a golden opportunity for China's skiing."

According to the latest edition of the book, 770 ski resorts were operating in China in snow season fiscal year 2019-20 (from May 1, 2019 to April 30, 2020), compared with 460 in fiscal year 2014-15, though this figure fell to 692 in 2021-22 as a result of COVID-19 lockdowns.

In 2021-22 there were 21.54 million skier visits to domestic ski resorts, compared with 11.95 million in 2014-15.

By the beginning of 2021 China had built 654 standard ice rinks, 317 percent more than in 2015, and 803 indoor and outdoor ski resorts, 41 percent more than in 2015, according to the report Beijing 2022: A Year On, by the International Olympic Committee.

"I think the real growth opportunity of the market is in the post-Winter Olympics period, and this trend will continue," Wu said. "It is preliminarily estimated that there will be a continuous growth period of five to eight years."

Laurent Vanat, author of the annual International Report on Snow and Mountain Tourism, said: "With the Olympic boom, awareness about winter sports has been growing tremendously in China, together with skiing and learning facilities. The number of skiers grew from some 3 million in 2012 to 13 million in the 2022 issue of the report. This brings China high on the podium of the ski nations."

Although the number of operating ski resorts has fallen slightly in the past three years because of the pandemic, Vanat said, "There is currently no sign that the ski area development process is slowing down, and part of the process is also that small ski areas with unsatisfactory offers and service get out of the market because clients are becoming more exacting.

"The total number of ski facilities is highly influenced by numerous very small areas that may have had problems in pandemic times and whose future may be sometimes unclear. However, the large facilities, such as indoor snow centers, have continued to grow year after year and even during the pandemic."

Now the country has all that is required to develop skiing further, Vanat said, adding that urban ski centers that sprang up during the Olympic boom are a great asset to familiarize the huge urban population, even those in southern China, with skiing.

"I do not see any reason it would suddenly stop. The centers present all the convenience required for easy learning and meet the first challenge of the ski industry, which is to make skiing accessible to the urban generations. Now the second challenge needs further hard work — to get skiing adopted by the young urban generations."

In its bid for the 2022 Winter Olympics, China pledged in 2015 to raise the number of people taking part in winter sports to 300 million. In fact, the National Bureau of Statistics says more than 346 million Chinese have taken up winter sports since the Games.

China won 15 medals, including nine gold medals, in Beijing last year, its most successful Winter Olympics. Experts say the success has led more young people to take part in skiing and snowboarding.

Wu said: "China will seize the historic opportunity of the Winter Olympic Games, popularize winter sports, and become a powerful country in winter sports. The idol effect of the Beijing Winter Olympic Games has been generated. Many teenagers have begun to systematically learn skiing and snowboarding. There are more and more domestic winter sports events."

Mark Thomas, managing director of S2M Consulting, a China-focused sports event company, said, "The success of Chinese athletes, such as Su Yiming and Eileen Gu, in international winter sports competitions, most notably the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, has no doubt inspired more Chinese people to take up winter sports, especially the younger generation who look to them as positive role models."

Another important factor that will boost interest in winter sports in China is the country's continued hosting of major events, Thomas said, adding that it could also support the development of a stronger domestic winter sports industry.

"China is taking steps to secure this legacy by not only consolidating the infrastructure around the winter sports industry, but also …hosting several major international winter sports events in the coming years, such as the FIS Freestyle Ski and Snowboarding World Championships."

While the Olympics have accelerated China's process of becoming a leading winter sports nation, there are noticeable challenges to sustained growth in China's ski industry, as its development of skiing started relatively late, and the country, with limited resources, has no skiing tradition.

Thomas said that one challenge for the country is its relatively short ski season, due to the relatively mild climate.

"This means that ski resorts may not be able to operate year-round and may have to rely on other activities to generate revenue during the off-season. Additionally, there are concerns about the environmental impact of ski resorts, particularly in areas with fragile ecosystems."

Wu said: "Improving the conversion rate of beginners is the top priority for the sustainable development of China's ski market. Cultivating a large number of ski instructors and exploring a ski teaching system suitable for China's primary market in an innovative way of thinking are the key to solving the pain points of industry development."

China's huge population base and market are important guarantees for the sustainability of winter sports, Wu said.

Sustainable development

"In addition, a large number of venues built under the influence of the Beijing Winter Olympics, including outdoor and indoor ski resorts, have also laid a solid foundation for the sustainable development of skiing in China from the perspective of supply."

While Olympic boom legacies can bring a high value-added platform to ski learning and promote the popularization of skiing, Vanat said the mindset of the people is also favorable to push further ski learning at school, as well as the organization and promotion of ski camps for young people.

He suggested another aspect that needs to be nurtured is the growth of family ski holidays.

"But this needs to be done wisely, to avoid sending early beginners straight into the mountains, where they will be displeased and definitely finish their ski career with a bad experience."

Instead, he said, he would like to see families first turn to urban or peri-urban ski learning facilities to learn about skiing before venturing onto real mountains.

Alpine destinations are confident the mushrooming growth of the ice and snow sector could have a knock-on benefit for ski resorts in Europe.

The country's rapid development of winter sports has led to a growing number of Chinese people visiting overseas destinations during the winter, a boon that many European destinations enjoyed in the years before COVID-19.

Austria welcomed 1 million Chinese travelers in 2019, the Austrian National Tourist Office said.

"That means within 10 years before the pandemic, the number of Chinese guests in Austria grew by 400 percent," said Emanuel Lehner-Telic, the office's head of markets Asia-Pacific. During the winter season of 2018-19, Austria welcomed 340,000 visitors from China, almost 60 percent more than in the winter of 2014-15.

Promising industry

China's winter leisure tourism industry is forecast to welcome more than 520 million visitors and generate revenue of more than 720 billion yuan ($105.51 billion) in the 2024-25 ice and snow season, the China Tourism Academy said.

Lehner-Telic said the Beijing Games were the first important step in turning winter sports into a long-term economic and tourism industry in China, as they created a passion for sports.

"Combined with the increasing need of a growing urban population for fresh air and experiences in a natural environment, all kinds of winter sports are an ideal way to recharge the batteries while maintaining a modern and healthy lifestyle."

With younger and more experienced travelers particularly interested in winter sports, uncovering more novel, less-mainstream destinations for more individualized experiences will be important, Lehner-Telic said.

"The Chinese market offers Austria an ideal opportunity to promote its hinterland and winter sport regions, and to adapt its products to attract guests for a longer stay."

Daniela Chiani, Greater China director at Switzerland Tourism, echoed the view and said, "The Beijing Olympic Games were definitely a great opportunity to promote snow sports and snow sports destinations."

The country recorded 1.4 million overnights from tourists coming from the Chinese mainland.

While the winter season is historically weaker for inbound travel from China, with more than 70 percent of Chinese travelers usually choosing to visit Switzerland in the summer, Chiani said the country enjoyed a more than 400 percent increase in winter overnights in the 10 years before the pandemic.

People might have a misconception that Switzerland is only for professional skiers, which is not the case, she said.

"The Swiss slopes are open for all levels and guests from all around the world — from complete beginners to experts — and many of our resorts even offer Chinese ski and snowboard instructors to make our guests feel more at ease."

Switzerland's national travel agency forecast that about 40 to 45 percent of its overnight stays will be from China by the end of this year, and said it hopes to see a full recovery of its ski industry by 2025-26.