Members of the Chinese delegation react after Beijing was elected to host the 2022 Winter Games at an IOC meeting in Kuala Lumpur on Friday. Photo: CFP

Beijing has proposed a budget totaling $1.5 billion for building three Olympic villages, three sports venues and other infrastructure for the 2022 Winter Olympic Games.

There are already six existing competition venues, including four 2008 Olympic Games legacy venues, that can host the 2022 Winter Games.

The Bird's Nest, the main venue for 2008 Summer Olympics, is set to host another opening ceremony of an Olympic Games event.

The Genting skiing resort in Chongli county of Zhangjiakou, Beijing's bidding partner, is set to host the freestyle skiing and snowboarding events in 2022.

Only three other venues will be built: the National Sliding Center in Beijing and the venues for Alpine skiing in Yanqing and cross country skiing in Zhangjiakou.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) said it will offer an additional contribution of approximately $880 million to support the staging of the Olympic Winter Games in 2022.

A high-speed railway connecting three Games zones in the two cities, which are about 200 kilometers apart, is being built to reduce the travel time to half an hour between the venues.

Winter sports are widely expected to flourish in the next few years. The organizing committee said they aim to use the Games to encourage interest in winter sports in a region that is home to more than 300 million people in northern China.

Zhang Chunsheng, a regional chief of the organizing committee in Zhangjiakou, told the Global Times on Friday that there will be some adjustment of the venues in Zhangjiakou following guidance from the IOC, but any changes will stick to the principles of sustainability and improving the athletes' experience.

Plans to host other winter sports events to gain operational experience before 2022 are still in the early stages, he said.

With no great winter sports record, China has been searching for possible figures to lead the events.

Song Andong, 18, rose to fame after being drafted by the National Hockey League team the New York Islanders in June. The young defenseman, also an ambassador for Beijing's bid, is hoped to set an example for hockey in China.

China's ice hockey teams, male and female, have never won an Olympic medal.

Figure skating pioneers Shen Xue and Zhao Hongbo introduced the sport in China by winning China's first gold medals in the sport at the World Championships and Olympic Winter Games. Their retirement in 2010 has left big shoes to fill, with teenagers Yan Han and Li Zijun leading the pack recently.

Chinese national short track speed skating has been on the podium since Yang Yang grabbed China's first Winter Olympic gold in Salt Lake City in 2002.

The short track speed skaters, under the guidance of head coach Li Yan, will compete under the gaze of current IOC member Yang.

But China is also looking for a new star on the snow as famed aerial skier Li Nina retires. Li is also an ambassador of the organizing committee.