Songwriters invited to pen tune for Winter Olympics

The collection of songs for the bidding of 2022 Winter Olympics was officially launched on Friday, the sixth anniversary of Beijing's successful hosting of the 2008 Olympic Games.

The Winter Olympics song collection will allow music professionals and enthusiastic residents to create songs with the theme of “Joyful Rendezvous upon Pure Ice and Snow”, through the end of 2014, said Hou Yulan, secretary-general of the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games Bid Committee on Friday.

The music collection will also draw the attention of the public, attracting them to take part in the bidding, said Yang Yang, International Olympic Committee member.

Besides the song collection and the bidding there is also another important goal: that of getting more people interested in healthy winter sports, including skiing and ice-skating, said Yang, a 2002 Olympic speed skating medalist.

As the first activity for the Beijing Olympic Music Festival, the collection is expected to enjoy wide participation and result in excellent songs like the ones from the the bidding for the 2008 Olympics, she said, adding that songs such as the theme song You and Me, went on to receive worldwide popularity.

Though the municipal government launched the music festival this year, the sporting activities aiming to develop the Olympic legacy have been held in Tongzhou district every year since 2010.