Links: China's Sports System
Friday, 27th June 2008 ~ Maggie ~ Link ~ Comments (1)
As the Olympics draw near, criticisms of China's sports system are appearing in more media reports. Here are links to some of them, followed by brief excerpts:Reuters (UK): Interview – Soccer- China game hampered by lack of base
"For a couple years it looked like China might become a footballing power but, with hindsight, it's easy to say why that wasn't real, because there's no grassroots, there's no pyramid," he said. "Corruption became an issue... with referees getting large bundles of cash and then being replenished at halftime to make sure the second half went the same."
Times Online (UK): China grabs cut of star athlete Liu Xiang's gold
A picture of health, he is the smiling face of Coca-Cola, Nike and several domestic brands. But Liu's gross earnings, reputed to be £1.9m a year from advertising and sponsorship, are dwarfed by those of Yao Ming, the Chinese basketball star who plays in the United States and picked up £29.6m last year.
The reason is that Liu's commercial career is run by officials at China's Track and Field Association, which takes a percentage of his earnings to repay the state for its years of training.
New York Times: Chinese athletes pushed to the limit, and beyond, for Olympic gold
For nearly a decade, he has tried to quit canoeing, he told The New York Times during an interview at the training center. He said he would rather attend college or start a business, but acknowledged that he was ill-equipped to do either one.
New York Times: China Presses Injured Athletes in Quest for Gold
Many have trained for the Games despite serious injuries. A female weight lifter, Tang Gonghong, persevered until early this year despite having such high blood pressure that her chief coach said it "threatens her life at any moment."
Tags: sports schools, sports system