Snow in the desert? Saudi megacity to host Asian Winter Games
- A US$500 billion futuristic city to be completed in 2026, called Neom, will be the first West Asian city to host the event
- The Games include competitions for skiing, snowboarding, ice hockey and figure skating – all 47 events on snow or ice
Saudi Arabia was chosen Tuesday to host the 2029 Asian Winter Games at an under-construction US$500 billion futuristic desert megacity that planners say will feature a year-round winter sports complex.
“The deserts and mountains of Saudi Arabia will soon be a playground for winter sports,” the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) said in a statement on the decision made during its general assembly meeting in Phnom Penh.
The Saudi bid was “unanimously approved”, the statement said, noting that the megacity known as Neom will be the first West Asian city to host the event.
First announced in 2017, Neom has consistently raised eyebrows for proposed flourishes like flying taxis and robot maids, even as architects and economists have questioned its feasibility.
In July, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman unveiled plans for a project within Neom known as The Line, two parallel mirror-encased skyscrapers extending over 170 kilometres (105 miles) of mountain and desert terrain.
The Asian Winter Games are slated to take place in Trojena, an area of Neom “where winter temperatures drop below zero Celsius (32 Fahrenheit) and year-round temperatures are generally 10 degrees cooler than the rest of the region”, according to the project’s website.