CBA confirms Donewald's departure from Xinjiang post

Updated: 2011-12-21 09:44

(Xinhua)

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CBA confirms Donewald's departure from Xinjiang post 

China's head coach Robert Donewald Jr gestures during the team's first second-round group match against Syria at the 2011 FIBA Asia Men's Basketball Championship in Wuhan, Central China's Hubei province, Sept 19, 2011. [Photo/Asianewsphoto] 

BEIJING - The Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) confirmed Tuesday that Jiang Xingquan would replace Robert Donewald Jr. as the head coach of the Xinjiang Guanghui, according to an official release on Tuesday.

The CBA said on its website, cba.gov.cn, "Jiang Xingquan will start his job as the head coach of the Xinjiang Guanghui in the 14th round of the CBA." Xinjiang will meet Liaoning in the 14th round at home on Wednesday.

The Xinjiang club has not made any official announcement of the replacement even though most of local media had reported the news on Monday.

Phone calls to the club officials were not answered for the past 24 hours.

Donewald had his first two-year spell in the CBA league with the Shanghai Sharks, a club of former Houston Rockets' Yao Ming, and signed a two-year contract with Xinjiang this summer.

The American failed to live up to his expectation as Xinjiang only won seven out of 11 matches on the fifth placing.  They were unbeaten after 13 rounds last season and finished No.1 in the regular season.

Donewald is the current head coach of the Chinese national men's team and will lead China to the 2012 London Olympic Games as his team won the title at the Asian Championships in September.