The countdown to the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games kicked off last month with an outdoor celebration on ice at the Beijing National Stadium. The entire presentation was streamed on Taobao Live, drawing over 2 million views, Alibaba Group said.

During the countdown celebration, Chinese gold medalists appeared on the channel to share their stories and experiences. Six of China’s top influencers were also invited to set up simultaneous livestreaming sessions at the event, offering fans special promotions for use on the Olympic store on Tmall, Alibaba’s popular B2C marketplace.

The Beijing Organizing Committee for the 2022 Olympic Winter Games chose livestreaming to kick off the countdown as it has become an increasingly popular way to engage with Chinese consumers and teach them about products.

Thanks to the livestreaming sessions, the visitor count to the Olympic store on Tmall surged, growing more than 1,000 times its normal traffic, according to the Beijing Organizing Committee. More than RMB6 million ($872,165) worth of Olympic Games 2020 merchandise – ranging from collectible pins and winter-themed jewelry to auspicious red packets – and products from official Beijing 2022 sponsors, such as Samsung, Anta Sports and Panasonic, were sold in one day.

To ramp up excitement for Tokyo 2020 and Beijing 2022, Taobao Live will invite celebrity Olympians and special guests over the coming months to talk about sports-related products, trends and stories.

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