NOVEMBER 14, 20 CHINA DAILY PAGE 7 OFF TRACK

Liu Xiang’s ‘three- Chinese diving champion peat’ selling tickets He Chong was chosen to light Ticket scalpers are demanding the ’ fl ame less It was confi rmed that 1,600 yuan ($240) per ticket to than 24 hours before the fi nal see Chinese superstar Liu Xiang performance. Chen Weiya, chief attempt his third successive Asian director of the open- Games title in the 110 meter ing ceremony, cast hurdles. his daughter, Chen Internet touts are asking for Jiayu, in the ceremony prices that amount to 20 times to help keep details a the 80 yuan face value of a ticket secret. for the event, the Shanghai Youth “LIU Daily said. XIANG IS “Liu Xiang is still a ticket-sell- STILL A ing machine,” the TICKET- paper said. SELLING The Shanghai MACHINE.” native, who disap- pointed millions DIRECTOR HAPPY by pulling up lame in a prelimi- nary 110m hurdles heat at the 2008 WITH HE’S ACTING Olympics, has dominated the event in Asia, winning at the Chen Weiya, chief director of the open- Asiad in in 2002 and in ing ceremony of the 16th Asiad, said he 2006. was happy with He Chong’s performance Liu, 27, remains a focal point aft er the Olympic and world diving cham- pion lit a giant fi recracker that sparked off of the Asiad despite a lingering the Asian Games’ fl ame on Friday night. injury that has kept him from the “He is an athlete, not a theater actor. I explosive form that won him an think he performed naturally,” Chen said Olympic gold medal in when asked whether the diver lived up to in 2004 and once carried him to a expectations. world record. Th e athlete had to assume the air of a Chinese officials have down- frightened but excited child before light- played their expectations for ing the crackers in conjunction with two Liu, with deputy head of China’s Chinese children. delegation Xiao Tian saying on Chen said his team decided to make He Wednesday the star hurdler was the fi nal torchbearer less than 24 hours before the final performance, meaning past his prime. that He had little time to prepare for the role. Th e director also confi rmed that one of Guangdong’s ‘Big the two children was his daughter, Chen Ben’ chiming again Jiayu. The director said he chose her to help keep the ceremony details a secret. An historic clock tower dubbed “’s Big Ben” by local AGENCE FRANCE - PRESSE residents has been called back into action to celebrate the Guangzhou (Pearl River) new town. year with a throw of 82.97 meters, Peng, whose feet were not long Asiad’s opening STUDENT Games, aft er its hourly chime was Apart from its hourly chime, the earning him a bronze. enough to reach the ground beneath ceremony. WU YI switched off almost three decades clock will play the Westminster “It is a huge honor to be selected the chess table, said she experienced Wu’s sweet HAS BEEN ago. Quarters every 15 minutes. as Japan’s captain,” Murakami told some butterfl ies in her stomach, but smile caught the DUBBED Th e century-old tower, known reporters. “It is our duty as athletes never felt intimidated. attention of local ‘MISS SMILE’ as Dazhonglou (“big clock build- to perform to our full potential at “I did feel a bit nervous, but media and neti- ON THE ing”), stopped chiming in the Murakami hoping the Asian Games. mostly because I only started zens when she INTERNET 1980s and has only been turned to repeat success “I have worked hard in the learning how to play one year posed beside back on intermittently to serve build-up to the competition to ago,” she said. speakers such important festivals. Japan’s Yukifumi Murakami make sure I come away with the Peng ranks as one of the three as Guangdong Governor Huang Dazhonglou, located on the will be looking for more Chinese right result.” youngest athletes at the Guang- Huahua, China’s Sports Minister northern bank of the Pearl River magic in the men’s javelin event zhou Games. The others, both Liu Peng and Sheikh Ahmad Al- in the city’s busy downtown, was at the Asian “IT IS OUR Pre-teen power of xiangqi players from the Republic Fahad Al-Sabah, president of the built in 1916 and subsequently Games aft er the DUTY AS of Korea, are Kim Taeg-yeong (11) Olympic Council of Asia, as they served as the office building of 30-year-old won mind over matter and Byun Sung-won (12). delivered speeches for about 15 the Guangdong and Guangzhou gold at the Asian ATHLETES minutes on Friday night. Customs. Championships TO PERFORM Th ere are few sports where a 12- “I didn’t know the camera was It was later given a facelift and in Guangzhou TO OUR year-old can trounce somebody Spotlight on set on me. I thought they were only reopened to tourists and local last year. FULL PO- 17 years their senior. Xiangqi, or Asiad hostess shooting the offi cials,” said Wu, who residents as the Guangzhou exhibi- Murakami, TENTIAL AT Chinese chess, is one of them. trained hard to smile throughout tion hall of the Museum of Chinese captain of THE ASIAN Chinese Taipei’s Peng Jou An Camera-friendly Wu Yi, a fresh- and was subsequently dubbed Customs. Japan’s Asian GAMES.” beat her Japanese opponent within man from Guangdong University “Miss Smile” on Internet portals. It was listed as a major historic Games delega- two hours on Saturday, despite the of Foreign Studies, got some unex- Curiously, her twin sister, Wu and cultural site under state pro- tion, became the fi rst Japanese to fact that Ayaka Ikeda is more than pected exposure aft er serving as a Yue, is also serving as a volunteer tection in 2006, when the customs win a world championships twice Peng’s age, and vastly more hostess standing beside guest speak- at the Asiad. offi ce moved to the city’s Zhujiang medal in the javelin in last experienced. ers and IOC officials during the AFP  REUTRS  CHINA DAILY