Restructuring, reviewing, downsizing, no stone is left unturned in the Saudi crown prince MBS’s pursuit of his megaprojects. Still, the updates tend to be the upsetting kind for the Kingdom, which has just lost the right to host the 10th Asian Winter Games in 2029 to Kazakhstan. Almaty has been named the new venue by the Olympic Council of Asia, with Saudi Arabia’s year-round ski resort Trojena nowhere near completion. What has not even been half-built since 2022, the year Trojena was personally announced by Crown Prince MBS, does not look like it will be up and running by 2029.
According to Bloomberg, Kazakhstan, which previously hosted the Asian Winter Games in 2011, will now do so again in the ready-made winter city of Almaty. Unlike Trojena, where plenty still has to be accomplished, including six distinct districts, retail and dining venues packed into a compact mountain core, the Water Village and Lake Village, and year-round alpine and adventure experiences, Almaty is already prepped and primed.
The country had spent over $1.4 billion on new and upgraded venues, including ski jumps, a biathlon stadium, ice arenas, and an athletes’ village. There is Medeu, the high-altitude outdoor speed-skating rink that has already hosted the Asian Winter Games in 2011. Then there is the Shymbulak ski resort, the Sunkar International Ski Jumping Complex, and Halyk Arena, a modern ice palace for hockey and figure skating.
Trojena, while great in concept, has started to look like a white-elephant venue, with hurdles wearing the mask of vision and ambition, including a 140-meter-deep artificial lake, a desalination plant, and the complex “Vault” structure. Almaty has the weather, the infrastructure, and an existing venue ecosystem that can be upgraded rather than invented from scratch. The Olympic Council of Asia may have changed the host city, but there is still hope and time for Trojena to complete and return to host the Games in 2033 instead. In the meantime, there is plenty to look forward to, with the 2030 Riyadh World Expo and the 2034 FIFA World Cup already lined up.
