*NortheastChina,oncethenation"sheavy-industryheartland,hasseenanescalatingwintersportsboomandfoundgoldenopportunitiesfromitssilverysnowinrecentyears.

(资料图片仅供参考)

*DuringthefirstsnowseasonafterChinasuccessfullyhostedtheBeijing2022WinterOlympics,northeastChina,consistingofLiaoning,Jilin,andHeilongjiangprovinces,achievedastrongrecoveryoftheice-and-snoweconomy.

*Despitefacingchallengessuchasinadequatesupportingfacilitiesandinsufficientdiversityofwintersports,northeastChinaisfirmlyseizingtheopportunitytoexpandthelayoutoftheice-and-snoweconomyandaimstotargettheglobalmarket.

CHANGCHUN,March25(Xinhua)--NortheastChina,oncethenation"sheavy-industryheartland,hasseenanescalatingwintersportsboomandfoundgoldenopportunitiesfromitssilverysnowinrecentyears.

Theregion,knownforitsrichice-and-snowresources,isridingonthewaveoftheBeijing2022WinterOlympicstodevelopitswintersportsindustryandpushforgreaterparticipation.

DuringthefirstsnowseasonafterChinasuccessfullyhostedtheBeijing2022WinterOlympics,northeastChina,consistingofLiaoning,Jilin,andHeilongjiangprovinces,achievedastrongrecoveryoftheice-and-snoweconomy.

Jilinregistereda23.61percentyear-on-yearincreaseinthenumberofdomestictouristsduringtheSpringFestivalholidaythisyear,andLiaoning"soverallrevenueofskiresortsintheperiodwas2.5timesthatofthesameholidaylastyear.Heilongjianghasseentheparticipationrateofmassice-and-snowsportsriseto57.8percent.

ThisaerialphototakenonNov.24,2022showstheBeidahuskiresortinJilinCity,northeastChina"sJilinProvince.(Xinhua/XuChang)

THRIVINGICE-AND-SNOWECONOMY

WhilespringisarrivinginmanypartsofChina,theskifieldsinnortheastChinaarestillopen.

ZhangZenghua,59,preparesmealsforskiloversfromacrossthecountryatherhomestayinNangouVillage,BeidahuTownship,inJilin.Arecentcoldfrontcontinuedherbriskbusiness.

Locatedatalatitudeof40to47degreesnorth,Jilinhasexcellentnaturalconditionsfordevelopingtheice-and-snowindustry.

Zhangisthefirstfarmerinthevillagetoengageinthehomestaybusiness,whichisclosetotheBeidahuskiresort."IhavewitnessedtheBeidahuskiresortdevelopintoatopskidestinationinChina,andIhavemoreguests,"saidZhang.

DuringtheSpringFestivalholidaythisyear,Jilinhandledabout11.55milliondomestictouristtrips,up23.61percentyearonyear,andgarnereddomestictourismrevenueof11.2billionyuan(about1.64billionU.S.dollars),anincreaseof33.31percentfromlastyear.

Morethan300kilometersawayfromNangouliesHarbin,theprovincialcapitalofHeilongjiang,whichprovidesmoreopportunitiesfortouriststogosightseeingandtakephotosinwinter.

Asanannualwintergala,theHarbinInternationalIceandSnowFestivalreceivedover800,000visitorsduringitslatestbusinessseason.Overahundredgianticeandsnowsculptures,longslidesmadeentirelyoficeandsnow,andnumerousotherrecreationalfacilitiesgainedpopularity.

"It"smyfirsttimeattheiceandsnowfestival,whichhasbeenwonderful.Thebigslidewasmagical,"saidPaulHando,atouristfromAustralia.

ThisaerialphototakenonJan.5,2023showsafireworksshowattheHarbinIce-SnowWorldthemeparkinHarbin,northeastChina"sHeilongjiangProvince.(Xinhua/WangJianwei)

HIGH-QUALITYDEVELOPMENT

Theice-and-snoweconomyboomnotonlyinjectedmorevitalityintonortheastChinabutenabledtheregiontogivefullplaytoitsadvantagesasanoldindustrialbasetodeveloptheice-and-snowindustry,whichgoesbeyondwintersportsandwintertourism.

InearlyFebruary,thetemperatureinHeiheCity,China"snorthernmostHeilongjiangProvince,droppedbelowminus20degreesCelcius.AtatesttrackinHeihe,locatedinahigh-latitudeandcoldregion,atestdriverwascheckingtheelectronicstabilitysystemofavehicle.

Normally,automobilesaretest-driveninextremeweatherconditionstoensurequality,drivability,andsafetybeforemassproduction,makingHeiheagreatdestinationtoconductrelevanttests.

Heihehasvigorouslypromotedthelocaltestdrivebusinesstofosternewgrowthengines.

Some170to200automobilemanufacturerscometothecityeachyeartoconductvehicletesting,generatingadirectincomeofbetween170and200millionyuanforthelocalcartestingindustry,saidDiaoWeidong,directorofHeihe"sbureauofindustryandinformationtechnology.

Furthermore,northeastChinahasturnedtheiceandsnow,whichthelocalsusedtocomplainaboutascausingmanyinconveniences,intoadrivingforceforeconomictransformationandupgrade.

TheGongchanglingdistrictinLiaoyangCity,LiaoningProvince,wasonceidentifiedasanationalresource-exhausteddistrict.

However,byestablishingthelargestice-and-snowtalenttrainingbaseinLiaoning,amovetotransformandupgradeitsdevelopmentmodel,thedistricthasattractedthousandsofenthusiastsfromvariousskiingclubstoattendtrainingsessions.

"Wetrainskicoaches,snowgroomeroperators,andskiresortoperators,amongothers,topromotethehigh-qualitydevelopmentoftheice-and-snowindustry,"saidCuiEnwei,chairmanofLiaoyangGongchanglingskiresortanddirectorofLiaoningwintersportsassociation.

ThisphototakenonFeb.24,2022showsstudentsofavocationalcollegewarmingupaheadofashorttrackspeedskatingtrainingsessionatQitaiheSportsCenterinQitaihe,northeastChina"sHeilongjiangProvince.(Xinhua/XieJianfei)

GOINGGLOBAL

Despitefacingchallengessuchasinadequatesupportingfacilitiesandinsufficientdiversityofwintersports,northeastChinaisfirmlyseizingtheopportunitytoexpandthelayoutoftheice-and-snoweconomyandaimstotargettheglobalmarket.

Jilinhasproposedthe"IceandSnowSilkRoad"plan."TheplanservesasaplatformtobuildinternationalcooperationinthefieldoficeandsnowandfurtherexpandtheinternationalinfluenceofJilin,"saidJinZhenlin,deputydirectorofthedepartmentofcultureandtourismofJilinProvince.

Heilongjianghasmadeitclearthatby2025,itplanstoconstructseveralnationalandprovincial-levelskiresortsandwintertourismdestinations,aswellascultivateseveralinternationallycompetitiveice-and-snowenterprisesandrelatedwell-knownbrands.

TheprovinceisalsothecradleofChina"sgoldmedalistsattheWinterOlympics.AthletesfromitsQitaiheCity,withapopulationoflessthan700,000,havewonsevenWinterOlympicgoldmedalsinjustover40years.

Thedevelopmentpotentialoftheice-and-snowindustryinnortheastChinaisalsoechoedbywintersportsprofessionals.

"I"veseenthemountain(piste)growandexpandduringthesefiveseasons.Therearebigchanges.AndIknowtherewillbeevenmoreinthenextthreetofiveyears,"saidMaxBlouin,aCanadiansnowboardcoachatBeidahuskiresort.

"Iseemoreandmorepeoplecomingtothissport.That"sthereasonwhyI"mhere.BecauseChinaisanewmarketthatwillboomwithinthenextfewyears,"Blouinadded.

Inaddition,there"sasolidfoundationfornortheastChina"sice-and-snowindustrytogoglobal.VasaloppetChina,anannuallong-distancecross-countryskiingraceoriginatinginSwedenoverahundredyearsago,hasbeenheldinChangchun,theprovincialcapitalofJilin,for21years.

ThecompetitionattractsathletesfromChinaandoverseasandhasprovidedfreecross-countryskiingtrainingforover1millionuniversitystudents.

"Theuniqueadvantagesofabundantice-and-snowresources,abroadparticipationbase,andleadingwintersportsperformanceinthecountrymakenortheastChinaastrongcompetitortobuildaworld-classice-and-snoweconomy,"saidMuDapeng,directoroftheJilinprovincialsportsbureau.(Videoreporters:HuangXinxin,SiXiaoshuai,ShaoMeiqi,WangFan,MaXiaocheng;videoeditors:LiangWanshan,YinLe)