Saudi Arabia just won a bid to host the 2029 Asian Winter Games but the futuristic city doesn’t exist yet.
“The deserts and mountains of Saudi Arabia will soon be a playground for winter sports,” the Olympic Council of Asia, or OCA, said in a statement, as quoted by the AFP.
The Asian country plans to build the mountain resort Neom for roughly $500 billion. The futuristic city is expected to accommodate up to 9 million residents by 2045, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman — who’s the chairman of Neom’s board — said in July. Neom is expected to cover over 16,5000 square kilometers, or around 10,230 square miles, making it bigger than Israel or Kuwait, per a February report by the BBC.
The games are programmed to take place in Trojena, a development within Neom that includes a year-round ski complex, a freshwater lake, and luxury hotels, according to Neom’s official website. Trojena is about 30 miles from the Saudi coastline and winter temperatures are often below freezing.
But, like the rest of Neom, Trojena doesn’t exist yet; it’s slated to be completed in 2026, per the AFP.
