Beijing (Reuters) – 02/08/2022. 07:45
A ski place in Beijing built on a steel mill
- One of Beijing’s Winter Olympic venues, Big Air Shougang, has caused a stir on social media
- The focus is on the place in western Beijing, which is basically a giant ski slope located in the middle of a reused industrial park
- Some viewers, who are used to seeing snow-covered mountains and forests, were amazed at the location of the cooling towers
One of Beijing’s Winter Olympic venues, the Big Air Shougang, caused a stir on social media on Monday due to its industrial look created by building it on the site of a former steel mill.
Focus on the place in the west Beijing , which is essentially a giant ski slope located in the middle of a reused industrial area, where it hosted the first day of Olympic competition With the women’s and men’s free skating qualifying competitions.
Some viewers, accustomed to seeing snow-covered mountains and forests, were amazed at the location of the cooling towers.
I tweeted LindsayMpls: “It feels so miserable to have some kind of nuclear facility as the backdrop for a big air skating event.”
Feels pretty dystopian to have some kind of nuclear facility as the backdrop for this Big Air skiing event ???? pic.twitter.com/l0nIvgX5Pv
— Lindsay (@LindsayMpls) February 7, 2022
Others joked that the venue brought back memories of Homer Simpson’s workplace on Fox’s classic sitcom, The Simpsons.
The Big Air stadium at the Olympics seems to be right next to the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant. pic.twitter.com/5CbedtGu3h
— John Lovett (@jlove1982) February 7, 2022
jlove1982 tweeted, referring to the fictional city in The Simpsons: “Looks like the Big Air Stadium at the Olympics is right next to the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant.”
The site of the Shougang Industrial Park, officials said, was chosen to represent sustainability by transforming an industrial area into an area for cultural use and recreation.
Some spectators and athletes were impressed, including US-born free skating gold medalist for Team China Elaine Gu.
“The place is great,” said Jo. “I mean, look around, there’s no snow anywhere else. And somehow when you ski on this job, you feel like you’re on a glacier somewhere.”
Always Coming
The Big Air features athletes gliding down a large slope and performing various gravity-defying tricks and twists.
It is a relatively new event that is popular with athletes and sponsors alike in part because the venue can be set up temporarily so that events can be held in fun, urban locations that are more accessible to spectators than in remote mountainous areas.
Big Air is also relatively new to gaming. She made her Olympic debut just four years ago in Pyeongchang for figure skaters.
Monday also saw the skiers participating for the first time as Free Ski Big Air presented their Olympics.
Shougang’s 64-meter-high, 164-meter-long undulating ramp will remain in place after the Games, making the world’s first permanent Big Air stadium.
“The place is amazing and the biggest jump is so unruly, it’s a great place to jump in,” said British snowboarder Kirsty Muir.
French competitor Antoine Adeles added: “The first time I was at the top, I was a bit disappointed, because when we’re at the top, we usually see a lot of mountains. But when the lights come on, it’s really amazing.”
Chief Architect Zhang Li told state media that the design is intended to resemble a ribbon floating in the air.
Some users of China’s popular social media app Little Red Book said it reminded them of a giant heel of a shoe.
One user named Wentworth6789 wrote: “It’s really cool, and it’s a super cyberpunk.”
