Foreign Coaches on Hand to Guide 2008 Gold Rush
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SPORTSCHINA 22 THURSDAY JANUARY 4, 2007 CHINA DAILY Jonas Kazlauskas Jim Lefebvre Sport: Basketball Sport: Baseball Nation: Lithuania Foreign coaches Nation: United States With international The former Major calibre players like Yao League Baseball (MLB) Ming and the talented player and manager, Yi Jianlian, the pressure 63, was assigned in is on Kazlauskas to build 2002 by the MLB to help a medal-winning team in China improve its baseball time for the Beijing 2008 on hand to guide level and win a medal at the Olympics. 2008 Beijing Games. Kazlauskas, 52, joined the After China slumped at a club team tourna- team in 2004 as assistant to veteran NBA coach ment in Japan, the under-fi re coach did not show up Del Harris. They reached the last eight at Athens in Doha, where China was crushed by Asia’s top trio of Olympics, but since then progress has been diffi cult Japan, South Korea, and Chinese Taipei, settling for a as Kazlauskas has sought to fi nd the winning blend. familiar fourth place. While Yao, Yi and former NBA player Wang Zhizhi 2008 gold rush Speaking after the Tokyo debacle, where the team form a solid front court, the back court has been were heavily beaten by club sides from Japan, South more of a problem. Korea and Chinese Taipei, a frustrated Lefebvre rounded The team reached the last 16 of the World Cham- who are notorious for losing control, mentally and tacti- on his players, accusing them of being lazy: “They think pionships in Japan in September, when they lost to With Games approaching cally, in big matches. an Asian cannot get strong. They just think they are eventual runners-up Greece. The team underlined “I have discovered that our team has talented players weak. Getting strong is easy if you are willing to work their regional dominance by winning the Asian Games fast, pressure is rising to with a lot of potential,” said the 60-year-old Serbian, who hard.” in Doha in December, a performance that pleased the is expected to lead the under-23 squad into the semifi nals coach: “The team started playing defense and realised score success in every event at the Beijing Games. that defense is very important and that it can bring us In comparison, Ma Liangxing’s women’s team fared less Christian Bauer to another level.” By Chen Xiangfeng well, losing to Japan in the group and getting eliminated Kazlauskas is a controversial fi gure, and his criti- in the semifi nals. Sport: Fencing cism of his players has drawn a backlash from the fans. Ma’s slumping prestige opened the door for German Nation: France During the Asian Games he accused Yi Jianlian of “not A group of foreign coaches are hoping to up China’s sport- Krautzun Eckhard, the former Chinese U20 head coach, showing his talent on the court”, and said his team as ing level and help the athletes strike gold at the Beijing who has just been appointed as women’s football adviser. Bauer was a whole “was not tough enough”. 2008 Olympic Games. The football governing body is anxious to see the women invited to instruct For the fi rst time in the nation’s history, there are more regain their position as a dominant force and win a medal China’s sabre team than a dozen overseas coaches guiding teams from all in 2008. in August. Success Tom Maher sporting spheres. It is believed if Ma is unable to get the team to a convinc- came straight away, “With the rapid development of the economy China has ing level soon, he will be replaced by Eckhard. as China swept gold Sport: Basketball become more international and open in many ways. It is at the Doha Asian Nation: Australia the same in sport. It is common to hire quality foreign A tale of two Kims Games. coaches,” said Xiao Tian, deputy director of the State China’s fi eld hockey teams are both spearheaded by Bauer, 55, was a Maher, 54, the General Administration of Sport. South Korean coaches and are heading in the right direc- world champion fencer and first foreign coach Basketball and football are the most popular sports, but tion as 2008 approaches. used to coach the French national and youth teams. of the country’s they also need to advance the most to reach international Kim Chang-back helped the women’s team successfully He helped his students to win a group silver medal in women’s basketball gold standard. defend the Asian Games title while Kim Sang-ryul inspired Sydney 2000 before moving to coach Italy. At 2004 team, was hired in Under the helm of Lithuanian head coach Jonas Kazlaus- the men to a historic second-place fi nish in Doha, losing Athens Games, he led the Italian sabres to a gold. 2004 to turn round kas and Australian coach Thomas Maher respectively, the to his home country South Korea 1-3. Chinese hopes suffered a blow when men’s foil the fortunes of a team men’s and women’s basketball teams have their eyes on The two Koreans’ tough training methods have sparked and women’s epee were struck off the Olympic roster, that had gone from silver podium fi nishes in 2008 after dominant performances at criticism, but their achievements have silenced the doubt- so now hopes rest on Bauer’s fast-improving sabres to medal heroes in Barcelona the Doha Asian Games in December. ers and won the respect of the players. secure medals on home soil. 1992, to zeroes. In Doha, without NBA superstar “Before the match and at the end of With talented young players including WNBA stars Yao Ming, Kazlauskas relied on the re- the match, I am Korean. They (Korean Sui Feifei and Miao Lijie, and the 1.97 meter super cen- turning Wang Zhizhi and the nation’s With the rapid players and coaches) are my students tre Chen Nan, Maher believes his team’s inside attack top NBA prospect Yi Jianlian to win and also my friends. But during the Sebastien Dulcus can be a deadly weapon against international power- their sixth gold at the competition. development of match, they are my opponents,” said houses like the United States. Kazlauskas and his staff now the economy China Sang-ryul. “My duty is to coach. I try Sport: Cycling Maher came into the job with a proven track record: switch their focus to the 2008 to beat every team. It is the same.” Nation: France he coached seven championship winning teams in the Olympics in Beijing and how best to has become more Chang-back’s women’s team is Australian domestic league, and took Australia to an integrate Yao into the team without international and open under even more pressure as expec- Sebastien Dulcus is the man charged with lighting Olympic bronze in Atlanta and silver in Sydney. He has breaking the growing partnership tations are high. up China’s dimmed Olympic cycling dream. also worked as a head coach in the US WNBA league. between Wang and Yi. in many ways. It is “The Asian Games gold is very The abrupt remove of the women’s 500 metre time His first tournament was a bust, as China A top four or podium finish is the same in sport. It is important to us. We know the coach trial from the Beijing Games ( Jiang Yonghua won a silver crumbled to a worst-ever 12th place at the World more achievable for the women than common to hire quality is under pressure and sometimes at Athens in the event) appeared to end the team’s Championships in Brazil last September. But the the men. under fi re. We hope the gold medal gold hopes. But Dulcus guided prodigy Guo Shuang to youthful make up of the team means Maher is still “I have a realistic hope that we can foreign coaches. will make him stay with us,” said a podium fi nish in the Individual Pursuit at the World confi dent of success. be in the fi nal four. We are not far XIAO TIAN player Ren Ye. Championships last year, as well as two gold medals Of his aims for the next 12 months: “I have a real- behind the top eight,” Maher said af- Deputy director of the State General Other foreign coaches earning at the Doha Asian Games. istic hope that we can be in the fi nal four. We are not ter China, the defending champions, Administration of Sport success in China include Frenchman far behind the top eight.” beat Chinese Taipei 90-59 to win their Sebastien Dulcus, who guided young fourth Asian title. women’s cyclist Guo Shuang to two For the Australian mentor, who was golds in Doha. Josef Capousek hired as China coach after their disappointing ninth-place Under his guidance, Guo has made signifi cant progress Ratomir Dujkovic fi nish at the 2004 Athens Olympics, the Asian Games was over the past two years, collecting two national titles in Sport: Canoeing just “part of the journey to Beijing”. half a year and winning two gold medals in the World Nation: Germany Sport: Soccer “If we didn’t win this tournament it would have been a Cup series. Nation: Serbia total failure. We have another two years and we need that “I have been training Guo in Switzerland over the past German canoe- because we are not ready for a medal yet,” Maher said. four months and I know her tactics well.