Several athletes at the 10th Chinese Ethnic Games expressed their best wishes for Chinese basketball namecard Mengke Bateer in Ordos on Tuesday.
Bateer's retirement ceremony will be held on Tuesday night in Beijing's Mastercard Center, where the basketball event of 2008 Olympic Games was featured.
"Bateer is our pride," said Mongolian horse rider Tomur, who won the second prize in 5,000m ethnic horse racing event.
As a basketball fan, Tomur paid much attention to Bateer, who began his professional career 25 years ago.
"His perseverance and will power impressed me a lot, hoping that he has a bright future after his retirement," said Tomur.
After a 12-year spell with Beijing team, Bateer joined NBA's Denver Nuggets in 2002. He got an NBA champion ring with San Antonio Spurs in 2003, writing a chapter in Chinese basketball history.
Yang Haiyan is a shuttlecock athlete from Inner Mongolia team. He paid much attention to Bateer in the past several years despite spending little time on basketball play.
"I know that he once had a stay in NBA," Yang said.
Yang's teammate, Bai Yinpeng, had a lucky encounter with Bateer when they were torch bearers of an international tournament held in Ordos, Bateer's home town, several years ago.
"Wish him all the best after his retirement," said Bai.
