Last week the winter Olympics was awarded to a city that rarely sees snow. When Beijing was named by the International Olympic Committee to host the 2022 event, the city promised to use artificial snow to accommodate skiing events.
This week Dubai announced the world's longest indoor ski slope. As The National reported yesterday, the Meydan One project will include a 1,200 metre run – nearly double the world record 640-metre piste at AlpinCenter Bottrop in Germany.
Does this now make the emirate a fledgling ski resort with guaranteed snow? Will the chattering classes of Europe soon be giving up Val d’Isere and Courchevel for Dubai?
We don’t know, but the thought of a few hours on the slopes of Meydan and Mall of the Emirates in the morning followed by an afternoon’s apres-ski on a sandy beach sounds like an unbeatable combination.
