Many thousands of university students are currently gathered at Changchun Jingyuetan cross-country ski resort in Changchun, capital of Northeast China's Jilin province, for a mass program of skiing training, according to resort officials.

So far the training, which kicked off on Nov 23, has attracted the participation of around 10,000 students from more than 20 universities -- including Jilin University, Jilin International Studies University, Jilin Jianzhu University, and Jilin Sport University.

Officials said that by the end of the training, which is scheduled to run to December, the number of students trained there will have topped 40,000.

They are receiving training for various skiing competitions, according to officials.

Jointly hosted by the Federation of University Sports of China and the Jilin Province education department, the annual skiing training was initiated in 2005 and has since trained more than 700,000 university students.

As the first professional cross-country skiing training program in the country, it helps popularize and promote winter sports, officials said.

In addition to skiing training, the Jingyuetan cross-country ski resort also organizes various events -- such as on Dec 26 this year it will stage a national schools winter sports event, hosted by the Ministry of Education, the Beijing Organizing Committee for the 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games and the Jilin Provincial People's Government.

During the event, university, high school, middle school and primary school students from across the country will participate in cross-country skiing championships.

The ski resort is open daily to Changchun locals from 9 am to 4 pm, with ticket price of 30 yuan ($4.27) per person and those who try cross-country skiing need to pay 50 yuan for two hours.

University students get into skiing training at Changchun Jingyuetan cross-country ski resort. [Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]