Zheng Jie returns to Sichuan to visit earthquake zone
Wednesday, 15th April 2009 ~ Chris ~ Link ~ Comments (0)
Chinese tennis star and Chengdu native Zheng Jie (郑洁) returned to Sichuan yesterday to participate in charity events in the area affected by last year's earthquake on May 12, which killed at least 69,000.Zheng, currently China's top female tennis player, was playing in Italy when the quake struck. Shortly afterward, Zheng became the darling of international tennis when she upset the world number one Ana Ivanovic en route to the semifinals at Wimbledon, where she lost to Serena Williams.
Zheng was the first Chinese player - male or female – to make it to the Wimbledon semis. She was lauded at home in China for donating all of her winnings at Wimbledon, totaling more than 1 million yuan ($146,334), to the earthquake relief effort. She also built a playground for students in the hard-hit city of Dujiangyan.
Zheng will be playing in Europe on May 12, so she decided to make an appearance just prior to the quake's anniversary.
"I will play matches in Europe on May 12 this year, so I will visit the stricken area a few days earlier this time," Zheng told Chinese media. "As a Sichuan native, I'm very happy to contribute to my hometown as much as possible."
This time around, Zheng was scheduled to visit primary school students of Hongbai Town in Shifang city and donate tennis equipment supplied by Chinese sporting goods company Anta, which sponsors her.
Zheng's international success has been a driving force behind a surge of interest in tennis in China. China is gradually building more of an infrastructure to promote tennis at the grassroots level, including the recently announced China Open Rating Tour (CRT), an amateur league which will host competitions in seven cities nationwide, including Chengdu.
Zheng, who is currently ranked 16th in the world, said her current goal is to crack the top 15. She is currently preparing to compete in the Fed Cup and French Open in May.
Tags: Chengdu, CRT, Sichuan, tennis, Wimbledon, Zheng Jie
China to launch amateur tennis league next month
Tuesday, 24th March 2009 ~ Chris ~ Link ~ Comments (0)
The words 'tennis powerhouse' are not generally associated with China, but the PRC has made great progress in recent years in terms of establishing itself as a rising star in the tennis world – witness Li Na coming in second at this month's Monterrey Open and Zheng Jie (pictured above) making it to the semifinals at Wimbledon last year.
In an effort to spur greater interest in tennis at the grassroots level, China's sports authorities announced the creation of a new national amateur tennis league – the China Open Rating Tour (CRT) – which will launch next month. As China Daily explains:
The CRT will be divided into three levels of proficiency to sharpen its competitive edge, similar to a boxing competition with different weight classes. It will feature singles, doubles and mixed doubles play. Winners of each competition level will battle for the national trophy during the newly promoted China Open tournament that runs from Oct 1-11.
The tournament will be divided into six regions, with seven cities hosting competition. The regions and cities include: North (Beijing), Northeast (Shenyang), Central (Wuhan), East (Shanghai), South (Guangzhou) and West (Kunming and Chengdu).
Amateurs and retired professionals of any age – or nationality – are invited to apply to compete in the CRT via the league's official website.
Zheng Jie image: ydl169.com
Tags: Beijing, Chengdu, China Open Rating Tour, CRT, Guangzhou, Kunming, Li Na, Shenyang, tennis, Wuhan, Zheng Jie