³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ

Get ready to watch some of the most spectacular sporting events around ... on snow and ice!

The 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing officially gets under way on Friday 4 February.

The 2022 competition will mark the return of the Olympics to Beijing for the first time in 14 years. The city previously hosted the 2008 Summer event.

But what can we expect and who should we be looking out for?

Here's everything you need to know about the Beijing Winter Olympic Games!

When are the Beijing Olympics taking place?

The Beijing Winter Olympics are scheduled to take place from 4-20 February.

The Winter Olympics take place every four years and the Winter and Summer Games are traditionally separated by two years.

However as last summer's Tokyo Games were postponed from 2020 because of the global coronavirus pandemic, the winter version of the worldwide sporting event will have its quickest turnaround in history!

The Paralympic Games will take place a month later in the city, between 4 - 13 March.

Is there a mascot?

The International Olympic Committee (IOC), who are the organisers of the Olympics, have revealed the official mascots for Beijing's games.

The official mascot for the Olympics is a panda called 'Bing Dwen Dwen'. Panda bears are native to China and are seen by many as the country's national animal.

In Mandarin Chinese, "Bing" means 'ice', while "Dwen Dwen" represents 'children'.

The official mascot for the Paralympics is a Chinese lantern called 'Shuey Rhon Rhon', which expresses the wish for more inclusion and understanding between cultures of the world.

In Chinese culture, lanterns represent harvest, celebration, warmth and light.

Where will the events take place?

The 2022 Winter Olympics are scheduled to include a record 109 events over 15 disciplines in seven sports - Biathlon, Bobsledding, Curling, Ice Hockey, Luge, Skating and Skiing.

The events will take place in China's capital Beijing, as well as towns in the neighbouring Hebei province.

As happened at the 2008 Summer Olympics, the opening and closing ceremonies of the Winter Olympics will be held at the Beijing National Stadium (also known as the Bird's Nest).

Will spectators be allowed to attend?

Fans were unable to attend last summer's Tokyo Olympics, due to international travel restrictions and the rising number of coronavirus infections in the city.

The Beijing games organisers have announced that international spectators won't be able to attend and that tickets will be sold "exclusively to spectators residing in China's mainland" who meet the coronavirus countermeasures.

The International Olympic Committee and International Paralympic Committee said it welcomed the decision to sell tickets to spectators from mainland China.

The Games will be available for people across the world to watch on television.

Who to watch out for?

Great Britain have competed at every Winter Olympics since they began in Chamonix in France in 1924 and will send a squad of about 50 athletes to Beijing for the 2022 Games.

At the last Winter Olympics that took place in South Korea in 2018, Team GB won five medals in total, one gold and four bronze.

We don't know the final Team GB line-up yet as many of the different sports teams are yet to announce their final squad, but here are some of the names expected to take part.

Freestyle skier Gus Kenworthy won slopestyle silver in Sochi in 2014 and is a five-time X Games medallist, making him one of Team GB's most decorated athletes heading into Beijing.

Laura Deas became the first Welsh woman to win a Winter Olympic medal four years ago and will no doubt be hoping to create further history in Beijing.

Katie Ormerod became Britain's first World Cup snowboard champion in 2020! She was a medal favourite going into the 2018 Winter Olympics but had to pull out after breaking her wrist and heel during training. We can't wait to see her compete in Beijing.

Are you excited for the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games? Which winter sport is your favourite? Let us know in the comments below!