“Wake up Winter”, which is written by renowned songwriter Wang Pingjiu and composed by Zhao Jialin, is said to expand upon an understanding of Olympism and winter sports culture from a Chinese perspective, while expressing an earnest desire to see a Winter Games hosted in Beijing.

It marks Pingjiu’s second collaboration with Chan on an Olympics song after 2008’s “Welcome to Beijing!”.

Speaking at the release, held in the Gehua New Century Hotel, Chan discussed the song’s twin messages of spreading world peace through the promotion of Olympic values and sustaining the flames of China’s new-found passion for winter sports.

"'The World is Different and Yet All the Same',” he sang to the audience before saying, “‘Wake Up Winter’ is a testament to how both sport and music have the power to inspire us all, no matter what cultural background we may come from.

“I am very proud to present this as my contribution to the Beijing 2022 Bid!”

Following the release, vice-chairman of the Beijing Olympic City Development Association, Jiang Xiaoyu, presented Chan with official certification for his role as a bid music consultant, thanking him for his “years of support in the promotion of the Olympic Movement in China through music performance”.

In response, Chan said: “As a pop singer who understands the power of music, and an ordinary Chinese who has tried my best ever since Beijing’s first Olympic bid back in 1993, I want to urge everyone to support Beijing’s bid for the 2022 Olympic Winter Games by sharing this song.”

Aside from Chan’s “Wake Up Winter”, other songs released in support of the bid are “A Dance of Ice and Snow”, “Beijing”, “Reunited”, “A Call for Love”, “Heart”, “Pursuing a Dream of Snow”, “To Never Admit Defeat”, “Wish”, and “Come Ski on the Great Wall”.

The songs feature contributions from other famous Chinese singers such as Sun Nan, singer Tan Jing, David Zee Tao, Chang Shilei, and Lu Han.

“The fact that we have such young composers and world-renowned singers working together reflects both the youthful and international nature of support behind the Beijing 2022 bid,” said Xiaoyu.

“It is the new generation of China’s teenagers and youngsters that feel winter sports passion most fervently; therefore, it is no surprise to me that most of the singers and songwriters behind these pieces are those popular with the country’s younger audiences.”

Also in attendance at the release was vice-mayor of Beijing and executive vice-president of the Beijing 2022 Bid Committee, Zhang Jiandong.

A YouTube video containing clips of each song, as well as song lyrics, can be found on Beijing 2022’s YouTube page by clicking here.   

The Kazakh capital Almaty is locked in a two-horse race with Beijing to host the 2022 Games ahead of a decision being made at the International Olympic Committee Session in Kuala Lumpur on July 31. 


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