China News Agency, Beijing, October 1st, Question: Why is modern basketball beyond gender, competition and region enduring?
China News Agency reporter Yang Chengchen
People can use the most beautiful words to praise the girls of the Chinese women's basketball team very early.
And in the world of competitive sports, a thrilling achievement can make a compliment even louder.
After a fierce battle, the Chinese women's basketball team advanced to the World Cup final again after 28 years.
At that moment, whether or not to win the championship seems to be secondary to Chinese fans.
In the past six years, the Chinese women's basketball team, which was rebuilt in a low period, has completed its transformation in the dark years.
Rising up from the predicament, being a blockbuster when not optimistic, and the drama of reversing the victory is the most intoxicating complex for sports fans.
Since this summer, the men's basketball European Championships and the Women's Basketball World Cup, which are called "the most watched in history", have been held in succession, making many fans forget that they are in the offseason of the American Basketball Association (NBA), lamenting that the game of basketball is changing. .
The evolution of modern basketball is beyond the level of competition, and to some extent it also represents the great enrichment of contemporary sports spirit.
The first is to transcend gender.
The rise of women's basketball around the world has made fans who have been concerned about basketball for a long time see that on the court that embodies the Olympic spirit of "higher, faster, stronger, and more united", the level of women's basketball is advancing by leaps and bounds. Not as bad as men.
Known as "the first player in active women's basketball", Stewart, an American women's basketball player, is making her a phenomenal sports idol, no matter in the professional arena or the world stage. Her commercial value continues to rise. The status of women's basketball has become more and more important.
The re-emergence of the Chinese women's basketball team is bound to trigger a wave of star-chasing effects in China. Li Meng, a player recently known as the "female version of James", has already attracted countless fans on the Internet.
On October 1st, Beijing time, the 2022 Women's Basketball World Cup ushered in the final battle.
The Chinese women's basketball team, which returned to the final stage after a lapse of 28 years, faced the world's No. 1 team in the United States.
After four fierce battles, the stronger American women's basketball team won the game 83:61, and the Chinese women's basketball team won the runner-up.
The picture shows Li Yueru making a layup.
Image source: IC photo
The second is no longer confined to professional competition.
It can be easily found on Chinese social platforms. The basketball games spontaneously organized by folk masters can tour the country. The level of excitement is not inferior to that of professionals. The number of fans gathered at the scene is even more than an ordinary professional game.
Young grassroots players defend the glory in the name of the city, and because of the Internet boom, their names have become familiar to fans.
Playing basketball for a living, these men redefine what it means to be a professional in the face of folk sports.
The "Village BA" in the mountainous area of Guizhou has become a popular "famous scene" in China and even internationally.
At the Tokyo Olympics, China's three-person women's basketball team, consisting of four girls, Wan Jiyuan, Zhang Zhiting, Wang Lili and Yang Shuyu, won the bronze medal. Folk base.
On July 28, 2021, in the women's three-person basketball bronze medal match at the Tokyo Olympics, the Chinese three-person women's basketball team defeated the French team 16-14 and won the women's three-person basketball bronze medal.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Du Yang
The third is that the world basketball is no longer "one family dominates".
Old fans often relish the spectacle of the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, when the "Dream Team" composed of American professional male players swept the world.
Later, with the popularity of television, American basketball superstars entered thousands of households, and the significance of American basketball for the promotion of this sport is self-evident.
But today is different.
In the first decade of the 21st century, South American basketball was astounding around the world. The Chinese giant Yao Ming stood on the world stage and broke the myth that "yellow people can't play basketball".
Today, the American professional basketball team, which once dominated the basketball world, has long been deeply influenced by Europe's style of highlighting the outside line and emphasizing the collective. The most valuable player in the regular season in the past four years has been monopolized by European players. Essential skills.
Some American football critics believe that the ratings of the NBA Finals are declining year by year and the absence of a new generation of superstars proves that the sport is "falling out of fashion".
But in China, the template of basketball is no longer "only the United States", only professional sports, and only men.
This sports event with a history of more than 100 years is more vigorous than ever because of the development of modern technology and the change of ideas.
Chinese fans have been looking forward to the emergence of the "next Yao Ming" and the revival of Chinese basketball.
The women's basketball team has returned to the World Cup final stage again, which may be a sign.
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