Chinese NBA Superstar Yao Ming Retires

July 22, 2011 from LinkAsia

Eight-time NBA All-Star Yao Ming has announced he will retire from the court, but not the sport. LinkAsia takes a look at what Chinese fans are saying on social media. Footage from Reuters.

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Yao Ming

Yao Ming is a retired Chinese professional basketball player who last played for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association. At the time of his final season, he was the tallest active player in the NBA, at 2.29 m. Yao, who was born in Shanghai, China, started p... Explore this topic

National Basketball Association

The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league and one of the Big Four major sports leagues in North America. With thirty franchised member clubs, the NBA is widely considered to be the premier men's professional basketball league i... Explore this topic

Basketball

Basketball is a team sport, the objective being to shoot a ball through a horizontally positioned basket to score points, while following a set of rules. Usually, two teams of five players play on a marked rectangular court with a basket at each width end. Basketball is one of... Explore this topic

China

China, officially the People's Republic of China, is a sovereign state located in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population of over 1.35 billion. The PRC is a single-party state governed by the Communist Party, with its seat of government in the cap... Explore this topic

Houston Rockets

The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston, Texas. The team plays in the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association. The team was established in 1967, and played in San Diego, California, for four ... Explore this topic

Shanghai Sharks

The Shanghai Sharks, are a Chinese Basketball Association team based in Shanghai, China. It is best-known outside China as the club that developed Yao Ming before he entered the NBA. With the "Moving Great Wall" on the team, the Sharks made the finals three years in a row, fac... Explore this topic

Social media

Sociale medier er medier for social interaktion, hvilket vil sige at der er et socialt sammenspil online. Det er altså kommunikation der går begge veje. Dette gøres ved at bruge lette og stærkt tilgængelige kommunikative teknikker. Sociale medier kan også siges at være brugen ... Explore this topic

LinkAsia

From Beijng to Tokyo, from Seoul to New Delhi and beyond, LinkAsia takes viewers into media about Asia -- from Asia -- offering unfiltered insight into one of the most diverse, fast-paced regions of the globe. Each week, LinkAsia brings you a unique half-hour program that co... Explore this topic

Sport

A game which involves some form of physical prowess. Explore this topic

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Yao Ming

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Yul Kwon:
In China, a bittersweet moment in sports. After a long struggle with nagging injuries, Yao Ming has announced his retirement from basketball. Yao Ming wasn’t the first Chinese player to compete in the NBA. But he was by far the best – an 8 time all-star with the Houston Rockets. Back in China, Yao’s popularity was a selling point for the NBA. His star power got games on TV and helped sell league merchandise. Yao also led the Chinese national team during the Beijing Olympics. He says he’s leaving the court, but he’s not leaving the game.

Yao Ming:
Today I have retired, but as one door closes, another door gradually opens and a brand new life is waiting for me outside that door. Although I have retired from the court, I will never leave basketball. The Shanghai Oriental Sharks Basketball Club will be the extension of my basketball career. I am running the club with the knowledge that I have learnt over the years.

Yul Kwon:
Yao Ming’s retirement led to an outpouring of messages in China’s social media. Here are a few of them:

I hope he will find another way to contribute to China and to basketball!

Mr. Yao finished his basketball career, and is set to start his business career.

I'm a little bit disappointed. I had hoped he could at least win the NBA division championship.

I will always support this great Chinese person!