IN BRIEF (Page 22)
ATHLETICS
Coach: Liu Xiang will get award sooner or later
Sun Haiping, coach of China's 110m hurdles superstar Liu Xiang, said it was only a matter of time before the track hero wins the IAAF award for Athlete of the Year.
Despite being nominated for the fourth consecutive year and leading the online poll, world-record holder Liu was again denied the top award by world-champion sprinter Tyson Gay of the United States.
"Being nominated is a big honor. So Liu is not depressed for not winning the award," Sun said. "Maybe it's only a matter of time."
Liu, whose biggest international award came in 2005 when he was given the Laureus Award for World Newcomer of the Year, had an impressive 2007 season, winning nine titles including his first world championship.
SOCCER
Beijing local university secures a double
The Beijing Institute of Technology secured a double championship, as expected, as both its student and teacher teams blanked their rivals in the title games of the 2007 Beijing Collegiate Amateur Soccer Championship over the weekend.
Its student team defeated Beijing University of Technology 3-0 and later its teacher team beat Beijing University of Chemical Technology 4-0 in the final.
The annual event was organized by Beijing College Sports Union and Jing-Du-Nian-Ci-An, a noted medicine manufacturer.
MISCELLANEOUS
Climbing events to be held to celebrate the new year
The 2008 China Sports Lottery National New Year Climbing Activity will be held on January 1 all around the country.
The event, organized by the State General Administration of Sports, the China Mountaineering Association and the Sports Lottery Administrative Center, will attract more than one million Chinese from 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities. Participants will take part in different sorts of climbing events to celebrate the coming of 2008 and the Beijing Olympics.
The annual event, inaugurated in 1996, has grown into a brand-name sporting activity. It traditionally signals the start of national sports activities and this year will also add to the festive atmosphere of Beijing hosting the Olympic Games.
TV and movie stars to attempt Kilimanjaro climb
Led by a coach from the Chinese Mountaineering Association, a group of China's TV and movie stars will try to climb Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest free-standing mountain in Africa, next February.
Sun Bin, the project manager of the Beijing 2008 Olympic torch relay on Mount Qomolangma, will be the techniques captain, while movie star Xia Yu will be the general captain. Other members include actress Ma Yili and sports commentator Huang Jianxiang.
Supported by winter sports giant The North Face, the team will leave Beijing on February 8, 2008 and is expected to reach the 5,895-meter peak on February 19. The North Face plans to recruit two or three more members to join the team.
(China Daily 11/28/2007 page22)
