Synopses & Reviews
The riveting story behind NBA giant Yao Ming, the ruthless Chinese sports machine that created him, and the East-West struggle over Chinas most famous son. The NBAs 76 All-Star Yao Ming has changed the face of basketball, revitalizing a league desperate for a new hero while becoming a multimillionaire pitchman for Reebok and McDonalds. But his journey to Americalike that of his forgotten foil, 71 Wang Zhizhibegan long before he set foot on the worlds brightest athletic stage.
Operation Yao Ming opens with the story of the two boys parents, basketball players brought together by Chinese officials intent on creating a generation of athletes who could bring glory to their resurgent motherland. Their children would have no more freedom to choose their fates. By age thirteen, Yao was pulled out of sports school to join the Shanghai Sharks pro team, following in the footsteps of Wang, then the star of the Peoples Liberation Army team. Rumors of the pair of Chinese giants soon attracted the NBA and American sports companies, all eager to tap a market of 1.3 billion consumers.
In suspenseful scenes, journalist Brook Larmer details the backroom maneuverings that brought Chinas first players to the NBA. Drawing on years of firsthand reporting, Larmer uncovers the disturbing truth behind Chinas drive to produce Olympic champions, while also taking readers behind the scenes of Americas multibillion-dollar sports empire. Caught in the middle are two young menone will become a mega-rich superstar and hero to millions, the other a struggling athlete rejected by his homeland yet lost in America.
Synopsis
The NBAUs 7'5" all-star Yao Ming has changed the face of basketball, revitalizing a league desperate for a new hero while becoming a multimillionaire pitchman for Reebok and McDonald's. But according to this biography, his journey to America--like that of his forgotten foil, Wang Zhizhi--began long before he set foot on the world's brightest stage.
Synopsis
The NBA's 7'5" all-star Yao Ming has changed the face of basketball, revitalizing a league desperate for a new hero while becoming a multimillionaire pitchman for Reebok and McDonald's. But according to this biography, his journey to America began much earlier.
About the Author
Brook Larmer was the Newsweek bureau chief in Buenos Aires, Miami, Hong Kong, and most recently Shanghai. Operation Yao Ming is his first book.