Opinion | Why even Yao Mings star power wont convince Hong Kong kids to celebrate handovers

But now Yao’s embarking on a mission surely impossible even for him: helping to mend the divisions between Hong Kong and mainland China.

The match, on July 30 at the Hong Kong Coliseum, will feature stars from the NBA and CBA and some local players to spread the message of the handover ‘celebrations’, which is officially “Together, Progress, Opportunity”.

In fairness, it’s just one of hundreds of wildly disparate events in Hong Kong and elsewhere, including several other sports contests, that have been lumped together under the celebration banner, so we probably shouldn’t expect Yao’s match to solve 20 years of hurt on its own.

The press announcement (at a restaurant that serves shark fin, by the way Ming) was attended by the head of NBA China, David Shoemaker, Hong Kong sports commissioner Yeung Tak-keung and representatives from South China Athletic Association, which will host the event.

There was no Q&A session, so more detail on the possible benefits of the game in bringing harmony to Hong Kong through basketball was not available.

The idea came from the Hong Kong government, said South China chairman Andy Lo Yun-sum. Any profit from the game, which will reportedly cost HK$30 million to host, will go to charity. As for possibly mending tensions, Lo said that “as a sportsperson, I don’t get involved in politics”.

The government is explicit in focusing the ‘celebrations’ on young people, even though ‘togetherness, progress and opportunity’ seem to be three concepts most of them feel denied.

With the 20th anniversary celebrations costing almost 10 times the 10th, it’s almost as if the government is trying to over-compensate for something.

Back at the Hong Kong Coliseum, you’d think tight security might also be required: the game will be broadcast on state television in the mainland, so the opportunities for hurting the feelings of the Chinese people in the fashion we’ve seen at Mong Kok Stadium – waving colonial flags, booing the national anthem etc – are rife.

And early plans are apparently for the NBA players to take on their CBA rivals – just how loud would the cheers be if the Americans hammer China?

So sorry Yao – the city’s basketball-mad youth will relish the opportunity to see some top players in action but even your star power is unlikely to convince many of them to embrace the motherland.

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: yao’s mission impossible

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