The ‘Asian Century’ in Sports?

HONOLULU (Nov. 9) — With the arrival of the Olympics in Beijing in 2008, China - and for that matter - the Summer Games themselves may never be the same again.

This was one of the many conclusions drawn from a first-ever East-West Sports Summit, sponsored Nov. 7-9 at the East-West Center in Honolulu, in partnership with Sports Marketing Japan.

Within China, the question is whether the games will trigger a sea change in attitudes toward state control of the media (and of athletes themselves): toward democratization and human rights; and even toward the pace of outside investment in the booming Chinese economy.

As for the games themselves, indeed for international sports in general, the Beijing Olympics may signal the opening of an Asian Age.

The sports summit drew a wide range of participants, ranging from government sports officials such as Ms. Bin Yuan, Director of Marketing for the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games and colorful sports figures such as Bobby Valentine, manager of the Chiba Lottee Marines in the Japanese Pacific League and former manager of the Texas Rangers and New York Mets.

The conference also attracted a large number of sports marketing experts, both from Asia and the United States.

Bringing the Olympics to China, a dream that nation has pursued for 100 years, brings huge opportunities and huge challenges, the Conference was told. There will be the obvious physical legacy for China, which has built 37 dazzling new sports venues from Hong Kong to Beijing. Behind the glossy façade of the venues are a huge new transportation network and a massive effort to clean up Beijing’s notoriously dirty air before the games open next summer.

Those physical assets will remain as a legacy of 2008. But the larger question is how the games will impact China as it strives to be a true global sports power, and how this emergence will impact the Olympics themselves in years to come.

One of the key questions is how the Olympics will change China’s growing sports industry sector, already a target of increasing government interest as a new but important economic asset.

“No question, the box has been opened, the Games are opening things up,” said Christopher Renner, president of the China-based sports marketing company, Helios Partners.

“This is going to be a one-of-a-kind opportunity (for China) to develop its largely untapped sports marketing potential.” And sports marketing, he said, can be a direct driver of increased media use and diversification. Overall spending in huge China has already surpassed Korea and will soon pass Japan, he said.

All of this potential depends on one critical factor, Renner said: Success by Chinese athletes. “Without stars, you cannot grow a sport.”

And here, Renner predicted, Chinese prospects look golden.

In the mere 20 years China has been participating in the Olympics, its medal haul, both total and gold, has just about doubled.

“And it is expected that they will have the most gold medals in the Beijing games,” he said.

The results will be unprecedented popularity for sports stars at home and even internationally. With that comes huge economic potential.

Commercial sponsorship, from international corporations and from Chinese corporations both private and state-owned enterprises, is expected to top $1 billion, he said. That would surpass the heavily “commercialized” Olympic in Atlanta in 1996, he said.

While a lot of the money goes to Olympic committees and - ideally - to follow-on sports organizations and training, individual athletes can also do well. He noted that stars such as NBA basketball sensation Yao Ming, sprinter Liu Xiang, gold-medal winning diver Guo JinGing and top badminton player Liu Dan have already received millions in commercial endorsements and sponsorships.

What are unclear, he noted, is exactly how much of this largess stays in the pockets of the athletes and how much goes back to government sports authorities and organizations.

There is also a good chance that the Olympics will lead to a surge of other international sports events in China, if for no other reason than to make good use of the many new venues that have been built. There is talk of attracting world-class tennis, auto racing, regular U.S. NBA games and even the 2010 Asian games, Renner said.

All of this glittering potential comes with a certain amount of risk, Renner acknowledged.

Dangers include “irrational enthusiasm” which could lead to destructive overpricing by rights holders, failure to deliver on promises, “ambush marketing” by unlicensed dealers and excessive government intervention, he said.

The conference also discussed other potential downsides for China and its ruling government as the result of the decision to host the Olympics.

For instance, can China possibly control the reporting efforts of between 20,000 and 30,000 members of the international press, with as many as 10,000 being unaccredited? Some of the usual restrictions on foreign press have already, or will be lifted, for the games. But no one knows how much reporting will take place on potentially problematic issues other than sport once these reporters are in the country.

Will the games end up serving as a barrier to reform because if they are successful, as expected, they will confer legitimacy on the current leadership and its current policies of control?

Or will the huge economic, media and physical changes that sweep through China during the Olympics lead inevitably to additional reforms?

And finally, how will these games influence the Olympics themselves? Only twice before have the Olympics come to Asia (Tokyo in 1964 and Seoul in 1988). While these two games were considered successes and obviously had a physical and social impact on their host countries, they did little to change the face of the Olympics themselves.

The picture may be different this time around, conference participants heard.

Because of its huge size, China has redefined global relationships in virtually every sphere from economics to international diplomacy.

It is likely, then, conference participants heard, that these games would also forever change the relationship between Asia and the ancient international Olympic movement.

For daily news on the Pacific Islands, see www.pireport.org. For links to all East-West Center media programs, fellowships and services, see www.eastwestcenter.org/journalists.

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