The first of those was a call for world leaders to "Give peace a chance" - a message that clearly fell on deaf ears in Russia as the country’s President Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine just four days after Bach's speech.

The other was a declaration that China was now a "winter sport country" - a statement that suggests the Asian nation was set to become a force on snow and ice.

It was not the first time Bach had made such a claim as he looked to justify the reason for staging the Winter Olympics in China - a decision which had been heavily criticised due to the the country’s human rights record.

Those concerns that led to many nations, including the United States, refusing to send Government officials to Beijing dominated the build-up to the Games which were held under tight COVID-19 restrictions.

The Games were also overshadowed by the doping scandal involving Russian teenage figure skating star Kamila Valieva that was exclusively revealed by insidethegames.

But the IOC and Chinese officials argue that the Games were a huge success as Beijing became the first city to host both the summer and winter editions of the Olympics.

The Chinese team certainly delivered, ranking third in the overall medals table after registering their best-ever performance.

Nine golds were won by China across short-track speed skating, freestyle skiing, snowboarding, speed skating and figure skating as well as four silvers and two bronzes.

Stars were made with teenage sensation Eileen Gu collecting two freestyle skiing titles and Ren Ziwei finishing the Games with two short-track gold medals around his neck.

Venues were also established with Shougang Park notably built on the site of a disused steel mill to host big air competitions and Yanqing becoming China’s National Alpine Skiing Centre after it was opened in 2019.

It is claimed by the IOC that China's aim to become a snow and ice destination had already been achieved before the Games got underway last February.

According to statistics, more than 650 standards ice rinks and 803 indoor and outdoors ski resorts had been created by the start of 2021.

China also claim that 346 million people have taken part in winter sport since 2015 and expect to generate revenue of more than CNY720 billion (£89 billion/$107 billion/€99 billion) from snow and ice tourism by 2025.

Li Jiahua, an avid skier from Xuzhou, told Chinese news agency Xinhua that the Games had inspired a nation.

"The Beijing Winter Olympics allowed every Chinese to know more about ice and snow sports," said Li.

"The legacy is just incredible.

"Regardless of where they live, more and more Chinese people are taking up winter sports."

Interest in winter sport appears to be growing in China with Beijing 2022 viewed as the catalyst but medals on the global stage have been sparse over the past 12 months while mystery surrounds the absence of the country’s national teams at top-level events.

When attending the International University Sport Federation Winter World University Games in Lake Placid last month, I was surprised to see only 25 athletes arrive from China - well short of the number sent by Asian rivals Japan and South Korea.

This figure may have impacted by new coronavirus testing requirements put in place by the United States Government amid concerns over positive cases in China but a return of one gold medal from Lake Placid 2023 does little to suggest that the nation is beginning to take winter sport world by storm.

Much of China’s success since Beijing 2022 has come in short-track speed skating, winning four golds, three silvers and three bronzes to rank fourth in the overall World Cup standings.

Lin Xiaojun captured the men’s 500 metres title in Dresden and Dordrecht earlier this month, while China also achieved mixed 2,000m relay and men’s 5,000m relay golds.

When looking across the other World Cup circuits in the Winter Olympic disciplines, China have rarely come out on top.

This season’s Speed Skating World Cup saw Zhongyan Ning claim two golds in Heerenveen last November, winning the men’s 1,000m title before helping his country clinch the men’s team sprint crown.

China has enjoyed three freestyle skiing halfpipe wins, with Gu grabbing two and Zhang Kexin taking the other.

There have been no aerials victories so far, but Kong Fanyu saved her best for the FIS Freestyle and Snowboarding World Championships, claiming women’s gold last Thursday (February 23).

Other highlights this season include a skeleton bronze for Chen Wenhao in Innsbruck and a monobob bronze for Ying Qing in Sigulda, both coming this month.

China’s cause has not been helped by the country’s zero-COVID policy which only came to an end last December, but this cannot be used as an excuse when considering recent no-shows.

There has been no participation from China’s Alpine skiers on the international stage this season, while the country’s biathlon team has not competed in World Cup competition.

China invested in biathlon, turning to foreign coaches to boost the team’s preparations for Beijing 2022 but their contracts were reportedly not renewed and that progress appears to have stalled.

Max Cobb, secretary general of the International Biathlon Union, told FasterSkier that he was mystified by China’s decision not to push on in the sport after the Games.

"They were really making progress as a nation and had some really decent results from their athletes," said Cobb.

"It’s really hard to know what the plan and leadership structure is, and who’s ultimately responsible.

"We certainly hope that they’ll come back - there’s just, at the moment, not a lot of activity, and it feels like the momentum has been lost."

FIS President Johan Eliasch has previously claimed that China can elevate winter sport to the "next level" after the worldwide governing body opened an office in Beijing in October 2021 to help support the country’s efforts to increase participation.

Eliasch insisted that "everything we hear [from the Chinese Ski Association] is aligned with their stated commitment to proliferate winter sports in China" but he failed to response to questions over the omission of the country’s cross-country and Nordic combined teams at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Planica.

The emergence of Wang Qiang generated excitement in cross-country skiing when placing second in the World Cup event in Drammen last March.

The 29-year-old was tipped for stardom by many, but he has not featured in a World Cup race this season.

Swedish newspaper Sportbladet reports that Wang, who had been training in Europe, had been sent home by the Chinese Sports Confederation following a change in its leadership.

"I had no choice," Wang told Sportbladet.

"I am aware that I am missing out on a fantastic season, but I have to accept the situation.

"I want to concentrate on training this summer and be in the World Cup next season.

"I think I’ll make it."

British cross-country skier Andrew Musgrave described the situation as "bizarre" in a report by FasterSkier.

"They’ve got this one guy that could be the world’s best skier, and he just doesn’t get to race," said Musgrave.

"I don’t’ quite understand it."

China is reportedly undergoing an internal audit of its cross-country programme with the possibility of a national team competing globally next season.

Let’s hope this is the case.

If statistics are to go by, it is hard to argue against Bach’s claims that China is a "winter sport country" but question marks will be raised over the legacy of Beijing 2022 should athletes continue to be denied the chance to compete on the big stage.