Yao to join survivalist Bear Grylls in the wild

To promote man-and-nature harmony, retired basketball star Yao Ming has embraced the challenge from British outdoor adventurer Bear Grylls to join the shooting of a wilderness-survival TV reality show.

Trekking through wilderness and feeding celebrity guests bizarre foods has been Grylls' routine in his hit adventure TV series, Running Wild with Bear Grylls. The show has featured a glittering cast, including US President Barack Obama, who accompanied the British survivalist into the wild.

Yao's management team confirmed on Friday that the former NBA star will appear in the show's Chinese version, which will be jointly presented by Grylls, Shanghai Media Group and Discover Asia Pacific.