The 2022 Beijing Olympic Winter Games kicked off on Feb 4. With the joyful moment celebrating the Chinese New Year of the Tiger, 2,871 athletes from 91 countries are participating in the Games. As a Hong Kong-born Chinese, I’m very proud of the motherland’s holding such a great event at this tough moment, as well as Beijing being the world's first “dual-Olympic city”. The Year of the Tiger, I believe, is not only a year of courage and strength, but also a year of well-being and happiness.

President Xi Jinping stressed that from “One World, One Dream” in 2008 to “Together for a Shared Future” in 2022, China has taken an active part in the Olympic movement and consistently championed the Olympic spirit. China is committed to pursuing the Olympic ideal with concrete actions.

Previously, most winter sports were popular only in Northeast China. Nowadays, a nationwide rollout is expected to encourage more and more people to enjoy the snow sports. President Xi told International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach: “By preparing for and organizing the Winter Games, we have successfully engaged 300 million Chinese in sport on snow and ice. We have also promoted regional development, ecological conservation, green and innovative solutions, and the betterment of people’s lives in China, and created greater space for the development of winter sport worldwide.” The world has witnessed the COVID-19 countermeasures that have been put in place, with the “closed loop” ensuring that the Games can be safe for everyone, especially for the athletes and participants.

The 2022 Winter Olympics, an international multisport event as scheduled since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, demonstrates a success of the new Olympic motto, “Faster, Higher, Stronger — Together”. Bach’s remarks on the event ring true: Solidarity fuels the IOC’s mission to make the world a better place through sport. “We can only go faster, we can only aim higher, we can only become stronger by standing together — in solidarity.”

China is all set to deliver a simple, safe and splendid Winter Olympics, making it another fantastic showcase to tell the “China story”. The spectacular opening ceremony directed by celebrated director Zhang Yimou amazed the world again, making the Chinese people’s confidence in their culture and the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics tangible and visible. The “cool” ceremony resembles the superiority of the Chinese socialist system. Not only has it ignited the Chinese people’s passion for the Olympic movement, but also boosted the development of sports in China and played an important role in promoting the Olympic spirit around the world.

The notion of “Together” and the spirit of standing in unity championed by the Olympic movement are needed more than at any time in history, as the world has no choice but to confront the pandemic in solidarity. President Xi noted that “instead of riding separately in some 190 small boats, countries around the world should stay together in one giant ship and sail toward a brighter future, and this is why we came up with ‘Together for a Shared Future’ as the official motto for Beijing 2022”.

“Together for a Shared Future” also has its extensive meaning to Hong Kong. People in Hong Kong must be united to create a better future instead of sinking in a downward spiral resulting from rifts and disputes. Meanwhile, I have noticed that sustainability stood at the core value in the construction projects for the 2022 Beijing Olympic Winter Games. Carbon dioxide ice-making technology has been adopted for the first time at the National Speed Skating Oval, Capital Gymnasium and Wukesong Sports Center, which is the latest ice-making technology in the world. It’s a successful example of laboratory research being transferred to a business application.

The 2022 Beijing Olympic Winter Games feature more events and will produce more gold medals than any previous Winter Games, providing opportunities for more athletes to fulfill their dreams. The Chinese mainland has a 176-athlete team for the games, while the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region’s team consists of three athletes competing in two sports. This is the largest team the subtropical city of Hong Kong has ever sent to the snow Olympics.

The latest statistics show that a total of 346 million Chinese people have participated in winter sports activities since Beijing’s successful bid for the Winter Olympics in 2015. It founded an ultimate goal of building a sporting powerhouse and strengthening the people’s fitness, which also forms an essential part of China’s endeavor to build a modern socialist country in an all-around manner.

As a medical specialist, I believe French Enlightenment writer Voltaire’s dictum “Life lies in motion” holds true. It breaks the mystery of life and reveals a law of life activities. Physical exercise maintains mental and physical coordination, which are important factors of prevention and elimination of fatigue. Only when you are healthy can you work hard and sense the happiness in life.

The author is co-founder of the Hong Kong Coalition and a council member of the Chinese Young Enterpreneurs’ Association.

The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.