New sports minister is senior Party official from Beijing

Gou Zhongwen, a senior Party official from Beijing who has leadership experience in the information technology and education sectors, has been appointed as China's new sports minister, it was announced on Monday.

Gou, who was deputy secretary of the Communist Party of China's Beijing municipal committee until his appointment, will lead the General Administration of Sport of China, the country's central sports governing body, following the retirement of his predecessor, Liu Peng. The appointment was announced after a meeting of the sports body on Monday.

Liu, who took office as sports chief in 2004, recently turned 65, the retirement age set for ministerial-level officials.