I got a message out of the blue this week from Patrick McEnroe – the former US Davis Cup captain turned ESPN commentator and, yes, brother of John – to go on his Holding Court podcast to talk about tennis and China, plus everything in between. It was a lot of fun – you can find that episode here (and see the video clip below). Just days earlier, I had the chance to talk to Chinese F1 driver Zhou Guanyu on my own China Sports Insider Podcast – and he had a lot to say (full show blurb below). We also talked on the show about China losing its hosting rights to the 2023 Asian Cup – and see some of my comments I made on the topic to Reuters here.
Tag Archives: Formula 1
Hockey Drama and Steph Hsiao Talks NFL in China
Episode 10 of the China Sports Insider Podcast is another packed show, in which we tackle tennis, F1, and ice hockey, plus hear from Steph Hsiao about the NFL in China.
This coming Monday, December 6, should see some sort of announcement over the make-up of the Chinese men’s Olympic ice hockey team for Beijing 2022 – as well as a final decision on whether or not China will get kicked out and replaced by Norway. After literally years of wrangling over the citizenship issue – i.e. how to recruit foreign-born players for Team China – sources from inside the camp indicate that this decision is coming right down to the wire. Simply put, some players are more comfortable signing away their existing citizenship in exchange for a Chinese passport than others – but the exact make-up of the roster could dramatically affect how China fares against the NHL’s best next February. Listen to the show directly on the player below or go to our landing page on SupChina here. It’s also available on all the usual podcast sites (search “China Sports Insider Podcast”).
Continue reading Hockey Drama and Steph Hsiao Talks NFL in China
Podcast: Jon Howse Talks Hockey Development in China
Jon Howse may just be the best hockey player currently based in China, although his minor league career in North America was cut short by concussions. He’s been coaching here since 2015 and had a ton of stories for us on the podcast – including, most shockingly, how he witnessed a coach “dropkick” an eight-year-old kid in the stomach. Fortunately, abuse like that is on the way out, Howse says, but it does still happen.
We wrapped up all the week’s stories before diving into a lengthy chat with Jon. All the info is below.
Introducing: Second Gear
As the first of a new series of podcasts (and, soon, videocasts/TV shows) that I’ll be hosting with Sean Henshelwood, Second Gear aims to be an unvarnished look at the Asian motorsport scene. For all the undoubted opportunities of the Asian market, it sometimes feels like the sport doesn’t get out of second gear – hence the name – so in addition to all the latest news and analysis, we’ll also be talking about what needs to be done to take the sport to the next level.
Issues discussed on this episode include:
- Chinese Formula 1 Grand Prix:
- Reaction to the race
- Ricciardo’s formative years racing in Asia
- Liberty Media’s plans for a second Chinese race:
- The issues with building a sustainable track in China capable of holding an F1 race
- How soon could this realistically happen?
- Fernando Alonso announces plans to build 40 go kart tracks in China over the next five years:
- Is it achievable?
- Can it produce China’s first F1 star?
[Photo credit above: 6th GEAR]
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Xi to stay on, Wanda to get out, Tmall turns to F1 and more Milan misery
Here’s a summary of what you can find in my weekly China Digest for SportBusiness:
Continue reading Xi to stay on, Wanda to get out, Tmall turns to F1 and more Milan misery
F1 in China: a view from the fans
Following the recent Chinese F1 Grand Prix in Shanghai, won in controversial circumstances by Lewis Hamilton, China Sports Insider spoke to two fans who had been at the race to get their thoughts.
Zhu Xiaoya, 18, is college student who has been following F1 and other motor sports (including GP3) on TV for two years. She traveled from Beijing to Shanghai for the race with her cousin, Peng Wen, a 24-year-old market research analyst, who is a long-time sports fan, but new to F1. Both were attending their first Grand Prix. Continue reading F1 in China: a view from the fans
Weekly Wrap: F1 F-up, Becks is back, Ding’s title bid and Perfect Pitch
The World Snooker Championships have begun in Sheffield, UK, with world number 2 Ding Junhui looking to add the only major title missing from his resume. Having won five ranking tournaments already this season, he continued his good form, taking a 6-3 lead over Michael Wasley in their best-of-19 first round match, and making the highest break of the tournament so far (136). Continue reading Weekly Wrap: F1 F-up, Becks is back, Ding’s title bid and Perfect Pitch
F1赛事想在中国扎根很难
2014年4月18日，上海将连续11年迎来F1大奖赛赛事，但是无论赛事本身会发生什么，这都有一种似曾相识的感觉。
China’s F1 antipathy a constant in season of flux
Formula 1 is a state of flux right now. Aside from all the massive rule changes for this season, Ferrari boss Stefano Domenicali quit this week, there’s due to be a new US-based team from 2015 and three of the existing teams are reported to be meeting in Shanghai on Thursday to discuss how to make their engines louder, after those new regulations sucked some of the noise out of the sport.
But the one constant that remains is China’s antipathy to Grand Prix racing. The race at the Shanghai International Circuit on Sunday will be the 11th consecutive Chinese Grand Prix held there, with current or former world champions winning eight out of the previous 10 races. But after the initial buzz, reality set in.
Here are some of the problems:
Continue reading China’s F1 antipathy a constant in season of flux
Ping pong boss to China: starting losing please!
It used to be that sports were run by sportsmen and women. But then, as is often the case, money got in the way and sports became more “professional”, so “professionals” were hired to run the sports.
For example, the head of the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) used to be former star Chinese player Xu Yinsheng, until he was replaced in 1999 by a “professional”, an electrical engineer called Adham Sharara. The Egyptian-born Canadian also played on the national team for three years, but his biography makes it clear he is a career administrator who played, rather than top player-turned-administrator.
15 years later, Sharara is still in charge and coming out with gems like this:
Continue reading Ping pong boss to China: starting losing please!