5G base stations are seen at the National Alpine Ski Center in the Yanqing competition area for the Beijing 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games on December 14, 2021. Photo: Shen Weiduo/ GT

While Team China has been achieving remarkable results two days into the ongoing Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympics, global audiences have also been enjoying the phenomenal event as if they watch competitions in person thanks to the advanced 5G free-viewpoint virtual reality (VR) video system developed by a Chinese research team led by Peking University (PKU). 

During the just-finished Para ice hockey tournament, where Team China made a stunning start in the debut with a 7-0 rout of Slovakia, people who watched the competition via broadcast experienced free-viewpoint access to replays of the game's highlights, science industry news outlet stdaily.com reported on Sunday. 

The immersive viewing experience was made possible by a free-viewpoint video system incorporating intelligent algorithms set in the venue, cooperating with 60 broadcast-grade ultra high-definition cameras and several servers and network devices. It was all developed by a team led by Chen Baoquan - the executive director of the PKU Frontier Computing Research Center.

Audiences are able to experience real-time 360-degree views at any place and any time, including at home with their own devices, while being able to choose different angles or specific athletes to watch based on their preferences, according to an official post by PKU.

The interactive VR technology can reach ordinary audiences directly with 5G mobile phones and networks, as users can watch games through the free-viewpoint video system without special equipment or dedicated bandwidth.

Analysts said that the ongoing Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympics and the just-closed Beijing Winter Olympics have widely adopted advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), VR and intelligent algorithms in the competitions, as well as the opening and closing ceremonies, in a bid to bring out the best viewing experiences for audiences across the globe. 

"The events showcased China's progressive development and breakthroughs in both soft and hard power such as the large-scale use of algorithms and the optimization of the use of VR," Liu Gang, director of the Nankai Institute of Economics and chief economist at the Chinese Institute of New Generation AI Development Strategies, told the Global Times on Sunday.

Various technologies were adopted for the opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter Paralympics.

For instance, China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp (CASTC), the major developer of the handheld torch and the main torch for the Beijing Winter Paralympics, opted to use hydrogen as the fuel, which fully achieved zero carbon emissions for the entire torch relay in the history of the Olympic Games, said CASTC's official WeChat.

CASTC also implemented technologies to make proper adjustments during the opening ceremony to guard the safety of Para-athletes. 

Liu noted that the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympics reflected China's increasing technological strength, and combined Chinese culture with the development of the country's world-leading technologies.