Tanking with Chinese characteristics, and a surprising tennis breakthrough

China Sports Insider Podcast

The China Sports Insider Podcast is back after a busy summer and will continue to evolve as Zero COVID continues to dominate the sports industry in China.

6:10 – To illustrate that point, the Chinese women’s volleyball team competed at a recent tournament in the Philippines wearing N95 masks during their game — something that drew unusual criticism from fans online.

8:48 – The big scandal of the Chinese sporting summer was former badminton world champion Ye Zhaoying revealing to Danish TV that she’d been ordered her to throw her 2000 Olympics semifinal game against teammate, Gong Zhichao, to give Gong the best chance of winning gold for China. There’s much more to this story, too.

12:20 – Can tanking ever be justified if, for example, it means there’s a greater chance to win a gold medal? A full-throated discussion with plenty of examples from the wide world of sports.

19:06 – Chinese tennis set records at the U.S. Open, but — for a change — it was the men leading the charge, with 22-year-old Wu Yibing making it to the third round. He’s one for the future after a stellar 2022, but has his development already been stunted?

25:21 – The WTA says their Finals will be held in Texas this year, after which they are “hopeful” of a return to China, but there are two main issues standing in the way — Zero COVID and Peng Shuai — so what happens next?

32:00 – Let us know what you’d like to hear on future episodes of the show. We’ll start with a debut livestream next week and take it from there!

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