Flag bearers Mohammed Al Duaij and Fatema Abdulateef of Kuwait lead their contingent during the parade of athletes at the opening ceremony of the 9th Asian Winter Games in Harbin, China.

HARBIN, China, Feb 8, (Agencies): Chinese President Xi Jinping officially opened the Ninth Asian Winter Games (Harbin 2025) in Harbin, Heilongjiang Province, northeast China. The event features nearly 1,500 athletes from 34 Asian countries, including a 65-member delegation from Kuwait.
The Kuwaiti athletes are competing in five sports: ice hockey, curling, snowboarding, speed skating, and figure skating.

The opening ceremony showcased a vibrant folklore performance themed "Dream of Winter, Love among Asia." Following the lighting of the cauldron and the parade of national flags, Vice-President of the Olympic Council of Asia, Timothy Tsun Ting Fok, delivered a speech welcoming the participants.

Ali Al-Merri, head of the Kuwaiti delegation, expressed gratitude for the support from His Highness the Amir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah. He emphasized the Kuwait Olympic Committee's commitment to promoting sports through participation in such continental events, highlighting the significance of the Asian Winter Games as the second-largest multi-sport event in Asia after the Asian Summer Games.

Over 8,000 spectators at the Harbin International Conference, Exhibition, and Sports Center burst into cheers as Xi officially declared the Games open in the presence of visiting dignitaries including International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach.

A record 34 countries and regions are competing in Harbin 2025, surpassing the previous high set at the 8th Asian Winter Games in Sapporo, Japan in 2017. Over 1,200 athletes are participating in ice events in Harbin and snow events in Yabuli, marking an increase from the previous record of 1,147 at the Sapporo Games.

Amid roaring cheers from the venue audience, star speed skater Ning Zhongyan and skier Liu Mengting, who made history by winning the women’s big air gold at the FIS Freeski World Cup in January, bore the Chinese national flag during the athletes’ parade.

The Chinese delegation is composed of 257 members, including 170 athletes. Five Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic champions, Xu Mengtao, Qi Guangpu, Gao Tingyu, Fan Kexin, and Liu Shaoang headline the squad of 85 men and 85 women that cover 64 events across six disciplines.