Rowing features prominently at China's National Games

Lightweights Chen and Xu from Zhejiang

China has made no bones about their desire to be at the top of the Beijing Olympics medal table in 2008 and rowing is being touted as one of the target medal earning sports.

The first public push towards this target is going on right now. The Tenth Chinese National Games in the eastern province of Jiangsu carries the slogan; ?do your best in 2005 and dream come true in 2008? and nearly 10,000 athletes are doing just that.

China has never won Olympic gold in rowing and vice-president of the Chinese Water Events Administration, Liu Aijie has said that a rowing gold at Beijing is a must. In an unprecedented move for Chinese rowing the sport has recently brought in six foreign coaches including Romania’s Olympic Champion coach Nick Gioga (Guangdong province) and United States and former Soviet Union coach Igor Grinko (Hebei province). Also coaching is Igor Sotov (Shanghai Club) and US Olympian Sean Hall (Fujian province).

At the National Games athletes compete for their province and winning means financial benefits and public accolades. At the 2001 National Games China’s Guangdong province proved to be the dominant rowing region, winning four gold medals. But this time the medals seem to be more spread out.

So far results show Zhejiang province to be dominating the women’s lightweight events including a winning time in the lightweight women’s quad of 6.28.05 that betters the World Best Time by half a second. Zhejiang has also won the lightweight women’s double in a surprise upset over favourites Guangdong. The double included Chen Aina, 22, and Xu Dongxiang, 22, who together finished second at the BearingPoint Rowing World Cup in Eton earlier this year.

Also featuring prominently from Zhejiang is Yan Shimin, 18, who made her international rowing debut by winning at Eton in the lightweight women’s single.

In other finals Grinko’s Hebei sculler won the men’s single while Jin Ziwei of Jiangxi province finished first in the women’s single. Ziwei, 20, last competed internationally at Athens in the women’s eight.

China’s President Hu Jintao opened the National Games last Wednesday. It is the largest since the Games began in 1959. Held every four years, this year 9,985 athletes and that number again of coaches, officials and staff, are contesting 32 sporting events including a combination of summer and winter Olympic events.

At Athens China won 32 gold medals and all of these athletes will be competing over the 12-day Games. The only missing star will be China’s basketball phenomenon Yao Ming who has obligations with the American basketball league.

As part of China’s push for stricter doping control 1,600 urine tests will be carried out and already pre-Games testing has brought to light 26 positive tests.

The Chinese National Games grew out of the government’s desire to raise China’s standing in the world of sport. When the inaugural event took place in 1959 China was struggling on the international sporting scene, so they decided to compete against themselves. Since then China has returned to the Olympic family and developed a sporting legacy that has raised them to the level of second in the world, behind the United States, at the Olympic Games.

Rowing Results (incomplete)

Men’s Lightweight Double (LM2x)
1st Jiangsu
2nd Jiangxi
3rd Fujian

Women’s Pair (W2-)
1st Shanghai
2nd Liaoning
3rd Beijing

Women’s Four (W4-)
1st Liaoning
2nd Beijing
3rd Guangdong

Men’s Four (M4-)
1st Guangdong
2nd Jiangsu
3rd Henan

Women’s Lightweight Double (LW2x) 
1st Zhejiang
2nd Guangdong
3rd Beijing

Men’s Double (M2x)
1st Fujian
2nd Zhejiang
3rd Guangdong

Women’s Single (W1x)
1st Jiangxi
2nd Shandong
3rd Henan

Related Links
Chinese rowers focus on National Games
Chinese women excel at FISA Team Cup
Ninth Chinese National Games

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