Saudi Arabia has been selected to host the Asian Winter Games in 2029 at a £440billion futuristic city that doesn't exist yet.
The country was 'unanimously approved' by the Olympic Council of Asia to stage the event. In recent years the country has increased their presence in sport by hosting more events across various sports such as boxing, WWE and F1 and have also funded football teams and golf leagues.
This event, not set to take place for another seven years, is reported to be held in Trojena, Neom city, a planned futuristic megacity featuring a mountain resort that is due to be completed in 2026.
According to Neom chief executive Nadhmi Al-Nasr, the venue "will have a suitable infrastructure to create the winter atmosphere in the heart of the desert". The luxurious tourist destination is set to become Saudi’s first outdoor ski resort, which will feature a man-made freshwater lake and will be powered by renewable energy.
The ski resort will also feature both natural and artificial snow as part of the project set to cost an astounding £440billion. In the region of Trojena, temperatures are much lower than elsewhere in Saudi Arabia with the Neom project's website noting: “Winter temperatures drop below zero celsius and year-round temperatures are generally ten degrees cooler than the rest of the region.”
Commenting on the decision, sports minister Prince Abdulaziz Bin Turki Al-Faisal, wrote on Twitter : "With the unlimited support by the Saudi leadership and HRH Crown Prince to the sport sector we are proud to announce we have won the bid to host AWG [Asian Winter Games] TROJENA2029 as the first country in west Asia."
The new city is part of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's Neom project which falls under the Saudi Kingdom's Vision 2030 development plan. The aim of the nation’s plan is to ensure they are no longer reliant on oil, and endeavour to transform their economy by developing sport in the nation.
On the other hand, the nation has been accused of using sport to enhance its reputation following criticism over its human rights record. The decision to host a winter sports event in Saudi Arabia has drawn criticism too.
Madeleine Orr, from Loughborough University's Sport Ecology Group, told BBC Sport : "From a business standpoint, it makes complete sense to go to a new market and try to grow winter sport there."
She added: "These growth goals are antithetical to environmental goals: there's no version of a winter sport event in Saudi Arabia that will be sustainable as it will require enormous water and energy resources, indoor sport spaces and an insane amount of travel."
The Arab nation has also faced significant criticism surrounding sportswashing by using high-profile sporting events to improve its global image. Those criticisms are unlikely to go away with regards to this latest venture.
Most notably the country staged Anthony Joshua's fight against Oleksandr Usyk while the controversial LIV Golf series is also funded by the country. The country's Public Investment Fund also holds an 80 per cent stake in Newcastle United and the Kingdom is planning i joint bid to host the 2030 football World Cup with Greece and Egypt.
