The Olympic arena for cross-country skiers and biathletes is located in Zhangjiakou, at an altitude of 1,700 meters, 180 km north of Beijing.
There are desert areas nearby that can pose unusual problems for the active.
- Since it is a high plateau, sand can enter.
It will be exciting to ride so hard before.
We have prepared the riders for that, says Swedish national team manager Anders Byström.
Have visited the Olympic resort
Ski profile Björn Lind, who won two Olympic gold medals in sprint in Turin in 2006 and is now event manager for a company with operations in China, has visited the Olympic resort of Zhangjiakou.
He talks about unusual sand challenges:
If you are unlucky, sand can come in from the desert nearby.
Once when I was there, a sandstorm pulled over the area.
Much is extreme there with special snow that is cold, harsh and dry.
At the same time, it can also be stable with minus seven degrees.
Yellow snow of sand
Anders Högberg, men's coach in the national team, has run several races in China, including the Chinese Vasaloppet.
He certifies that sand in the snow can be a challenge.
- I have, in Inner Mongolia, skied when sand colored the snow yellow.
It is possible to go but it is heavier.
If there is a sandstorm in the middle of a competition, it will probably be canceled or moved forward, but I can imagine that it will still be a mixture of sand in the snow.
There are probably few who have done thorough wall tests with sand in the snow, he says and laughs.
"We are prepared"
Swedish poll manager Petter Myhlback is calm when it comes to sand in the Olympic track:
- Because there is so little precipitation and dry climate, the snow does not bind the soil together.
Then there may be pollution in the snow.
Sometimes similar things have happened in the Alps, says Myhlback.
- We are prepared, I do not want to tell you exactly how we are going for it but we have a plan.
The Olympic competitions in skiing and biathlon begin on 5 February.
CLIP: This has happened: Linn Svahn misses the Olympics
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Linn Svahn misses the Olympics.
Photo: Bildbyrån