Against all odds, Winter Games open in dual-Olympic city Beijing

BEIJING, Feb. 4: Beijing is basking in the glow of the Olympic flame for a second time after the 2022 Winter Olympics officially opened Friday night in the Bird's Nest Stadium - an iconic 2008 Summer Games venue.

At 21:51 Beijing time, Chinese President Xi Jinping declared the Games open, in front of about 40,000 home audience and a host of state leaders and international dignitaries, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.