China

China needs to build big sporting brands

By Tang Yue and Craig McIntosh (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-03-01 07:14

There is certainly no question that the Chinese have a passion for sport. The Beijing Olympics was a sell-out success and, although the butt of many jokes after their dismal show at the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan, the national soccer team also has a strong fanbase.

And like anywhere, China's young sports viewers are desperate to emulate their heroes.

Experts predict Li and Zheng's performances this year will spark another rush in Chinese kids picking up tennis rackets - Zheng and partner Yan Zi claimed the country's first Grand Slam title when they won the women's doubles in Australia in 2006.

The success of figure skating duo Shen Xue and Zhao Hongbo, who broke Russia's 46-year stranglehold on the Winter Olympics pairs event by winning gold in Vancouver on Feb 15, is also expected to see more people take to the ice. "The Games have been a dream come true," said their coach Yao Bin. "I hope more young people will love the sport, which is demanding but very attractive."

But while Chinese sports teams were once a symbol of national pride in the 1960s and 1970s, when they paved the way for bilateral communications with the West, the industry is now more about marketing and fighting for a share of the global market.

After collecting more than 170 Olympic medals, the nation has already proved its sporting prowess, so sportsmen and women can concentrate more on commercial success, said Yi Jiandong.

One example of this shift is "Hammer" Lang Ping. She helped the Chinese women's volleyball team to win five straight world titles in the 1980s, making her a national hero. But in 2008, she led the US women's team to silver at the Beijing Games and received huge support from the home crowd - even after her squad beat China in the group stages.

She now earns an estimated 5 million yuan a year coaching Evergrand, the first fully professional women's volleyball team in China.

Zheng and Li were also among four of China's top women's tennis players who were allowed by the country's authorities to take complete charge of their careers, making them responsible for hiring their own coaches and medical staff. Sports experts say the move is a major factor in the pair's recent good form.

Xiao Tian, the vice director of the State General Administration of Sport, said China is looking at long-term plans to build on its Olympic successes.

"It's hard for us to surpass what we've achieved at the Beijing Games but the Olympics only last for 16 days, professional leagues run throughout the year," he said. "We need to adjust our sights and start making our mark in more professional sports."

Lei Lei in Vancouver contributed to the story (China Daily 03/01/2010 page1)