KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, Shawwal 15, 1436, Jul 31, 2015, SPA -- Beijing was selected Friday to host the 2022 Winter Olympics, becoming the first city awarded both the winter and summer games, AP reported. Beijing narrowly defeated Almaty, Kazakhstan, in a vote of the International Olympic Committee. The vote was surprisingly close: 44-40. The Chinese capital, which hosted the 2008 Summer Olympics, came in to the vote as the strong favorite, despite its lack of natural snow. The secret vote was conducted by paper ballot, after the first electronic vote experienced technical faults with the tablets. --SPA 13:46 LOCAL TIME 10:46 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w