Sports stars want new schools to combine academics, athletics(2)

Retired Chinese basketball great Yao Ming (C), NBA China CEO David Shoemaker (L) and US basketball coach Billy Singleton pose with two children at the opening ceremony of the NBA Yao School, a basketball program jointly launched by Yao and the NBA to foster youth development in basketball and life, at the Wukesong Park in Beijing, Feb 22, 2013. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Yao, another international sports icon for China, echoed Li by kicking off the opening semester of his NBA Yao School at Beijing's Wukesong Basketball Park over the weekend.

Jointly launched by Yao and the National Basketball Association, the school features a 13-week extracurricular bilingual program, which has attracted 200 children ages 6 to 16 to practice basketball skills while learning life lessons with each other.

"The key to the program is to teach children the spirit of teamwork, respect of the game and rules, perseverance and a self-challenging attitude to foster a well-rounded personality for children," said Yao, who registered in Shanghai Jiao Tong University to learn finance and management after retiring in 2011.

The school was Yao's first initiative in youth education, but it won't be the last such undertaking.

NBA China CEO David Shoemaker revealed that more such joint programs and events will be brought to fruition in the future.

"The experience itself is unique (for the students) as they will compete and learn in a fun environment. They will learn a little bit of English and what it means to be a teammate, a good leader and to have confidence," he said.

Despite its prowess at the Olympics, China is not yet a world sports power in terms of athletes' overall development and mass fitness level.

On one hand, retired sports heroes struggle to find jobs after leaving the athletic spotlight due to their lack of education. On the other hand, many teenage students fail on fitness tests for lack of exercise while studying in the exam-oriented education system.

In 2007, media reported that Ai Dongmei, a champion marathon runner in 1999, was selling her medals to feed her family.

Meanwhile, obesity and myopia continued to increase among primary and middle school students, according to research results released last year by the Ministry of Education and General Administration of Sport.

Wu Wenqiang, assistant dean of Beijing Sport University's physical education school, said Li's and Yao's efforts to introduce all-round academic and physical education should be further promoted and emulated.