The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) made the unanimous decision to award Harbin, the only bidder, at its General Assembly in Bangkok.

It will be the second time for Harbin, nicknamed "Ice City", to host the Asian Winter Games after the first one in 1996, and the third time for the regional Games to be held in a Chinese city, with the other being Changchun in 2007.

The Harbin bid team included Chinese Olympic Committee vice-president and International Olympic Committee member Yu Zaiqing, Heilongjiang Province Vice-Governor Han Shengjian, Harbin Mayor Zhang Qixiang, and Winter Olympic speed skating gold medallist Zhang Hong.

"I’m fully convinced Harbin can deliver an outstanding Asian Winter Games and ensure the development of winter sports in China and the whole of Asia," Yu told delegates. 

"The Chinese Olympic Committee fully supports Harbin.

"We have excellent winter sports facilities in Harbin which has previously hosted a number of events including the third Asian Winter Games in 1996, the 10th National Winter Games of China in 2003, and the 24th World University Games in 2009."

In her presentation, Zhang revealed 16 sports facilities will be upgraded for Harbin 2025, and that other infrastructure including five-star accommodation, and transport with an international airport was already in place in a city recognised by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization as a "Music City".

Harbin, whose name was originally a Manchu word meaning "a place for drying fishing nets", grew from a small rural settlement on the Songhua River to become one of the largest cities in Northeast China.

The city has been heavily influenced by Russian culture and has been occupied twice by Moscow during its history. 

It now has a population of more than 10 million. 

"I’m a native of Harbin and this is a city of Olympic champions," Zhang told the General Assembly, a reference to the fact she is one of seven gold medallists to come from the city. 

"I’m confident that my hometown will provide ideal conditions for athletes to achieve their dreams."

Lack of suitable hosts means that the Asian Winter Games is not held as frequently as the Summer event. 

Sapporo in Japan held the last Asian Winter Games in 2017 when 64 events in 11 sports were contested. 

It was the second time they had hosted the Games having staged the first edition in 1986.

The yet-to-be-built Saudi Arabia resort of Trojena was awarded the 2029 Asian Winter Games as last year's OCA General Assembly in Phnom Penh.