July 18, 2015 – The Olympic Movement is looking ahead to the 128^th IOC Session in Kuala Lumpur (MAS) from July 30-Aug. 3, 2015 when the International Olympic Committee will elect Almaty (KAZ) or Beijing (CHN) to stage the Olympic Winter Games in 2022. The two cities have different approaches and are starting from different points, both reflecting the spirit of Olympic Agenda 2020 in their bids:

Almaty’s vision for the Games is rooted in the desire to accelerate economic and social reforms; build on the country’s winter sports heritage; and showcase the positive aspects of Almaty and Kazakhstan. The vision is aligned with the Kazakhstan 2050 strategy. Almaty’s concept seeks to deliver a legacy in three areas: sports and physical activity; venues and infrastructure; and economic growth.

Meanwhile, Beijing’s vision for the Games seeks to incorporate winter sports into people’s lives, with the ultimate goal of improving overall fitness and health. Beijing 2022 has offered a regional concept intended to develop a winter sports market for more than 300 million people in northern China. This vision is fully aligned with national economic growth strategies and priorities.

On 6^th June 2015, Almaty and Beijing officially presented their candidatures to the members of the IOC and the Presidents and Secretaries General of the International Olympic Winter Sports Federations at the Olympic Museum in Lausanne (SUI).

A week earlier, the IOC Evaluation Commission for the Olympic Winter Games 2022 released its report which highlighted the opportunities and challenges associated with hosting the 2022 Olympics in both candidate cities. Click here for download: http://www.olympic.org/Documents/Host_city_elections/ioc_evaluation_commission_report_sp_eng.pdf

The host city for the Olympic Winter Games 2022 will be elected following a final presentation to the full IOC membership on July 31, 2015.