Saudi Crown Prince to Attend 2022 Olympics in China

China’s Embassy in Riyadh said it welcomes Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics in Beijing on February 4, according to a post on the embassy’s Twitter account.

The Beijing Winter Olympics kick off in one week, and Beijing will become the first city to host both the Summer and Winter Games, and some venues from 2008 will be re-used, including the Bird’s Nest stadium.

نرحب ترحيبًا حارًا بصاحب السمو الملكي ولي العهد السعودي محمد بن سلمان بن عبدالعزيز في الصين لحضور حفل افتتاح دورة الألعاب الأولمبية الشتوية في بكين #بكين_2022، ومن المؤمل أن تُعزز هذه الزيارة تنمية المجال الأولمبي العالمي وتطور العلاقات الاستراتجية الشاملة الصينية السعودية.

— Embassy of China in KSA سفارة الصين في السعودية (@ChinaEmbKSA) January 28, 2022

The opening ceremony will again be done by Chinese director Zhang Yimou.

Where the 2008 Summer Games dazzled in what was a considered China’s arrival on the world stage, the Winter Olympics will be staged by a country that has grown far wealthier, more powerful and, under President Xi Jinping, more authoritarian and increasingly at odds with the West.