In a surprising turn of events, the 2029 Asian Winter Games, initially awarded to Saudi Arabia’s futuristic city of Neom, will now be hosted by Almaty, Kazakhstan. The decision, announced by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) during the 2026 Winter Olympics, reflects logistical challenges faced by Saudi Arabia in delivering a world-class winter sports venue in the desert.
Neom, envisioned as a high-tech megacity under Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, had promised an iconic location for the Games at Trojena, a planned mountain resort within the…
