Almaty officially replaces Neom as host of 2029 Asian Winter Games

The city of Almaty in Kazakhstan has been announced as the new host of the 2029 Asian Winter Games, replacing the Trojena ski resort in Neom, Saudi Arabia.

At a ceremony in Milan yesterday, the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) officially announced that Almaty would host the event in 2029.

The 10th edition of the Asian Winter Games was originally planned to be hosted in Saudi Arabia at the Trojena ski resort, which is under construction as part of the Neom mega project.

However, after widespread reports of construction delays, the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) and the Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee jointly announced that the Neom games would be postponed for an unspecified period of time last month.

Host City Contract signed

Now an alternative host for the event has been found.

"The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) today held the signing ceremony of the Host City Contract for the 10th Asian Winter Games, scheduled to be staged in Almaty, Republic of Kazakhstan, in 2029," said a statement from the Olympic Council of Asia.

"The Host City Contract was signed between the Olympic Council of Asia and the National Olympic Committee of the Republic of Kazakhstan, as part of the completion of the institutional procedures approved for hosting the continental event."

Trojena was originally announced as the host of the 2029 Asian Winter Games in 2022 with Neom chief executive Nadhmi al-Nasr saying the event would take place "in the heart of the desert".

Trojena ski resort delayed

Masterplanned by German architecture studio LAVA, the Trojena resort is currently under construction in the mountainous Tabuk region in the northwest of the country. If built, it will be arranged around a giant artificial lake and contain buildings designed by UNStudio, Zaha Hadid Architects, and Aedas.

The project was planned to be completed this year, but has reportedly faced construction delays with a completion date now unclear.

Trojena is part of the Neom mega project, which will also reportedly consist of a 170-kilometre-long city called The Line. It is the most high-profile of 14 gigaprojects being developed in Saudi Arabia as part of the Saudi Vision 2030 plan to shift the country's economy away from a reliance on oil.

The development has been criticised widely on human rights and sustainability grounds, and last year, Dezeen asked if it was time for architecture studios to walk away from the project in the face of mounting pressure from campaigners.

Neom is undertaking a broad review and is reportedly "considering significantly cutting its workforce".

The main image shows the Trojena ski resort.

The post Almaty officially replaces Neom as host of 2029 Asian Winter Games appeared first on Dezeen.