Jilin Prepares for Snow, Sport and Students

　　Jilin province boasts premium powder snow, calm winds and warm sunshine, as well as world-class ski resorts and high-standard ice rinks, attracting winter sports enthusiasts from around the world.
　　In recent years, the province in Northeast China has focused on developing its ice and snow industry and accelerating the transformation of "cold resources" into a "hot economy". It is now going all out to prepare for the 33rd Winter Universiade, which will be held from Jan 15 to 25, 2027, in Changchun, the main venue, and Jilin city, the secondary venue.
　　 
　　It is the largest comprehensive winter sports event for university students worldwide, aiming to promote international university sports and culture. With a talent pool supported by 68 universities and nearly 600,000 college students, Jilin province is able to mobilize about 8,000 high-quality volunteers to provide internationally standardized services for the upcoming sporting event.
　　More than 4,000 students from Jilin International Studies University have signed up to volunteer for the 2027 Winter Universiade.
　　"Our university is committed to delivering all support services with the utmost professionalism, to ensure the successful hosting of a simple, safe, and splendid international sports event and a grand gathering for youth exchange worldwide," says Qin He, president of the university and a deputy to the 14th National People's Congress, China's top legislature, which was recently held in Beijing.
　　She adds that international students at the university have also actively joined the volunteer service. "We have developed tailored training courses to meet their needs, enabling both Chinese and international students to join hands to serve the sporting event."
　　She says the university will leverage its foreign language strengths to provide high-quality language support and international exchange services for the 33rd Winter Universiade. The university has established a special task force for volunteer services and formulated a coordinated mechanism to ensure work progresses smoothly.
　　The School of Volunteer Service Management at the university is a training base of the China Volunteer Service Federation. "Relying on this platform, we have formed a national-level expert team, created tailored training programs for Winter Universiade volunteers and city volunteers, developed over 10 general knowledge courses, and compiled multiple volunteer service handbooks to fully improve their service skills and professionalism," Qin says.
　　The university has already finished creating work manuals in English, Russian, French, and Spanish for volunteers and will carry out specialized language training for those who have passed preliminary selection. The university is also in charge of matching volunteers to different positions at the Changchun FISU World Conference, which will be held during the sporting event, and providing them with the training required for the academic conference.
　　She recalls that when Changchun hosted the 6th Asian Winter Games in 2007, foreign language skills in Jilin province mainly came from English speakers who provided basic communication.
　　She says that for the Winter Universiade in 2027, Jilin province has established a talent training system with multilingual coverage, distinctive ice and snow features, and deep integration of industry and education. "Language support has expanded from English alone to more than 20 languages. The training model has been upgraded to an integrated system that combines foreign languages with ice and snow terminology, various disciplines, and artificial intelligence," she says.
　　Qin believes that hosting the sporting event will leave behind long-lasting legacies for Jilin province. "It will promote the development of ice and snow sports, tourism and industry in the province. It will also boost the upgrading of winter sports venues, transportation networks and urban environments, enabling local residents to fully share the fruits of staging the event. "Jilin will further engage with the world, attracting more people to learn about, visit, invest in and promote the province. This will inject new momentum into its opening-up and international exchanges," she says.
　　She hopes that athletes and guests from home and abroad will be impressed by the province's stunning ice and snow landscapes, the hospitality of its people, delicious local cuisine and rich culture. She also hopes they will cherish their time there and the cross-border friendship, share Jilin's openness and kindness with the world, and come back to visit.
　　Source: China Daily Editor: Liu Jiadi