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Kuala Lumpur - Beijing has beaten Kazakhstan's Almaty in a vote to be the host of the Winter Olympics in 2022, the International Olympic Committee announced on Friday.
Beijing was a heavy favourite going into the voting mainly because many of the 85 voting members of the IOC have experience working with China during the 2008 Summer Games.
The IOC chose Beijing despite the fact that they would rely heavily on artificial snow to be able to host the Games, even though the skiing events will happen 200km from the capital.
Chinese officials said they have abundant water supplies and more than enough snow-making equipment to provide the best conditions for the Winter Games.
In her final pitch before the vote, Liu Yandong - vice premier of China - emphasised Beijing's experience in hosting large scale competitions as well as China's political and economic stability as the best reasons why they would be a good host of the 2022 Winter Olympics.
The win makes Beijing the first city in the world to host both Summer and Winter Olympic Games.
In the contest for the hosting of 2020 Winter Youth Olympics, Lausanne edged out the Romanian city of Brasov.
Voting was held up because electronic tablets did not work and delegates had to use pen and paper.
