Asians in American Sports | Asian American Poll

ASIANS IN AMERICAN SPORTS
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WHAT YOU SAY

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China's loss to Korea in basketball is a national humiliation. Korea did not even qualify for the World Championships.

Some of you might say we could have smoked out Korea if Wang Zhizhi was on the team, but we have consistently beaten Korea even without Wang.

Either they all were paid to lose, or the refs. were deliberately taking sides.

And, it is obvious China played lackluster game that day. Perhaps Yao and Bateer were saving their bodies to prepare for NBA season?

Well, it is just the Asian Games. We'll see what happens in the Olympics.
sut gok Tuesday, October 15, 2002 at 18:37:05 (PDT) [64.130.235.33]

The summer of 1996 found me for the first time in Turkey. My destination was Konya, a city that was once the capital of the Seljuk Turks before the Ottomans moved it to Istanbul. Konya is the site of the Sufi Whirling Dervish dances as well as the oldest continuing athletic event in the world. Almost annually since 1640 hordes of Turkey's finest athletes have gathered there for the "Kirkpinar", the world series of Turkish oil wrestling. Enjoying the sweet "baklava" pastry made it more enjoyable. Hardly any tourists attend the tournament, and almost no Americans.

During the Korean War, the greatest number of North Korea's prisoners was, of course, American. Of the twelve nations represented, however, the third most numerous were the Turks, with 229. The U.S. Army study found them to have been just as exemplary in prison as they were in battle. The Turks' secret weapons were discipline, great pride in their brigade, and an unbroken chain of command. The final official report contains this Turkish officer's account of his prison experience:

"I told the Chinese commander of the camp that I was in charge of my group. If he wanted anything done, he was to come to me, and I would see that it was done. If he removed me, the responsibility would fall not on him but on the man next below me, and after that on the man below him. And so on, down thru the ranks, until there were only two privates left. Then the senior private would be in charge. They could kill us, I told him, but they couldn't make us do what we didn't want to do. Discipline was our salvation, and we all knew it. If a Turk had questioned an order from his superior to share his food or lift a [stretcher], the way I understand some of your men did, he would literally have had his teeth knocked in. Not by his superior, either, but by the Turk nearest to him. The Communists made attempts to indoctrinate [us]. . .but they failed completely, and eventually gave up."

The crowning consequence of this discipline was that, although half of the 229 were wounded when captured, not one died in prison. When a Turk got sick, the rest nursed him to health. If he was ordered to the hospital, two well Turks went along to minister to him hand and foot and to carry him back to the compound when he was discharged. At mealtime two Turks were dispatched to carry the food back, and it was divided equally down to the last morsel. There was no hogging, no rule of dog eat dog, not ever. Death by "give-up-itis" was impossible. While an American might curl up alone at night and die in the bitter cold, the Turks all piled together in one corner of their cell, and every hour the two on the outside would rotate to the center of the pile. The Chinese guards actually grew to fear their Turkish prisoners, as they watched the interminable wrestling matches which kept them so tough - and, paradoxically, so loyal to one another.

Turkish wrestlers are guileless, friendly, physically awesome men who come from every province of a big country just to wrestle, forty at a time, in a great grassy field, barefoot and barechested, covered with olive oil, in 92-degree summer heat. These fighters range in age from twelve to forty, and each contest may last from a few minutes to an hour. I find it hard to imagine many of our own wrestlers matching their stamina, or to be competing in such a gruelling sport at the age of forty. The Turkish style with its dearth of rules could not easily be introduced into our country, because the brotherly trust which exists between the combatants is unknown in rule-rich American sports. There are referees, but their involvement is minimal. Turks oiled bodies are so difficult to grasp that, in seeking to secure leverage for a throw, a wrestler is permitted to thrust his hand or his entire forearm down into his opponent's leather trousers, something which would freak out any Western athlete. Intentional fouls are almost non-existent. There is no such thing as a draw, the match continuing until one wins and the other loses.

A most impressive aspect of the tournament is the participants almost universal comradeliness. Opponents will kibitz and joke with one another while waiting for their line to be sent onto the field. Before tying up for this fight to the finish each pair engages in elaborate Islamic rituals of respect for one another. If during the match one wrestler should get something in his eye the struggle simply pauses, his opponent usually fetches cloth and water to wash it away, then they face off, and the fight is resumed. Once the match is decided they rise to embrace, touch foreheads together and leave the field. A foreign observer must ask how much these deeply-ingrained wrestling traditions contribute to the fact that Turks historically stick together in tough situations, while we Asian-Americans seem often inclined to "look out for Number One.

When the three-day tournament draws to a close, and the champions have been cheered by a packed stadium, the President of Turkey crowns the Bash Pehlivan of all Turkey, a national hero frequently honored by his home town with a statue.
Fellow Asian-Americans, we have a lot to learn from the Turks and the way their wrestlers treat one another even when they are fighting. We must go on struggling to love and care for one another despite the immense racial, ethnic and religious differences which characterize American culture. If we fail, then the individualism of which we proudly boast will be our undoing at the hand of some other power whose people have learned to stick together for the common good. Asian-Americans will either become genuine brothers, bound together by a compassion which transcends mere tolerance, or we will crumble due to infighting.
sut gok Tuesday, October 15, 2002 at 18:31:26 (PDT) [64.130.235.33]

China may suck at boxing, taekwando and judo. But, it regularly does well in the Greco-Roman events. Along with Turkey and Iran, China is one of the few Asian nations who compete on an international and professional level. Chinese wrestling (Shut jiao, similar to the Turkish oil wrestling, "yali guresh") has a long tradition in China since the Han Dynasty. Even longer than kungfu.

"Iranians, Chinese & Turks Dominate Greco Roman Edmonton, 25/06/2002"

Iran, Turkey and China dominated the men's Greco Roman matches Monday at the fifth World University Wrestling Championships in Edmonton, Canada.

Six Iranians and six Turks qualified for Monday's semi-finals (June 24th), on the final day of the competition at the University of Alberta. Five Chinese wrestlers also advanced to the semi-finals from the preliminary rounds.

Hassan Rangraz and Mehdi Nasiri of Iran had 3-0 records in the 55- and 66-kilogram divisions, respectively. Rangraz won his matches 8-3 and twice by superiority, 14-1 and 10-0. Masiri won his matches 11-1, 4-1 and 5-3.

Ai Linuer and Ren Li of China also had three consecutive wins, at 60- and 120-kg, respectively. Linuer allowed one point. He won 3-1 in overtime, 10-0 and 12-0. Li's final two wins were on pins. His first win was 6-2.

Yusef Duzer of Turkey had a 3-0 record and permitted one point in the 74-kg division. He won 5-0, 5-1 and 3-0.

Bojan Mijatov of Yugoslavia had a 3-0 record as he qualified for the semi-finals in the 84-kg division.

Eun-Cheol Park of Korea was also 3-0 as he qualified for the 55-kg semi-finals.

Sixty-six athletes from 19 countries entered the Greco Roman, including 13 at 66 kg, 11 for both the 60 and 74 kg.

Chinese wrestling is not like the WWF and Sumo version. Chinese wrestlers wrestle to the last breath and it really tests one's strength and endurance. Chinese wrestlers also have respect for each other and will not go out of their way to inflict unnecessary harm (as boxing does).
Sut gok Tuesday, October 15, 2002 at 18:20:21 (PDT) [64.130.235.33]

China is best in Asia in basketball??
Say what????? Yao who? Not this year. Corea beat China in men's basketball finals, damn, Corea wins gold in baseball, rugby, volleyball, hockey, handball and basketball. We should of won the soccer title too.
Now can we get some love from our Chinese friends? Come on, you guys can say it, say it with me "Corea pound for pound best athletes in Asia."
Ooohhhhhhh.....Coreeeaaaa!!!

Seven,
There's no shame in third at all. No one ever said such things.
Counter puncher Monday, October 14, 2002 at 20:04:41 (PDT) [64.12.96.12]

haha,

i got my info on the Korea Times.
http://www.hankooki.com/kt_sports/200209/t2002091717042847110.htm
just do a google search.

but i did make a mistake about how many athletes Korea and Japan sent. here's an excerpt:

-South Korea has drawn media attention for its decision to send its largest delegation ever. 1008 members, comprising 770 athletes and 238 officials, making it the most-represented country at the games...While the Land of the Rising Sun's delegation is larger (compared to China), with 988 members including 659 athletes, sports powerhouse China has sent a greater number of athletes, making up 689 of the 946-member delegation.

I said that Korea had about 1000 athletes and Japan about 900 something. so my mistake, sorry. still, at least according to the article i read, Korea has the most athletes. But i'm also aware that there are a lot of other factors that go into medal counts such as athletic ability, financial backing, good sporting facilities, home crowd support, judging, etc.

as for my comments sounding like excuses, if that's how you want to see it, so be it. I am merely taking an argument that i felt was too simplistic and trying to add a different perspective to it. I think that's the point of this forum.
seven Monday, October 14, 2002 at 04:36:24 (PDT) [203.216.76.213]

hmmm... most of these comments are about how south corea won and why china or japan didnt??? hmmmmmmmmmmmmm is everyone trying to hate on south corea for winning or just trying to make up excuses... ???
winner=winnerloser=loser Sunday, October 13, 2002 at 23:24:28 (PDT) [216.12.28.118]

"South korean soccer team lost to iran. the iranians booked their place in the finals courtesy of a penalty shoot-out win over much-experienced and favored korea. and yes, the korean team which played against iran were the same team which played at the world-cup semi-finals recently. Haha, just 4 months after the world cup, the koreans came tumbling down and sorely defeated by the minnow Iranians who ranked so much lower than the koreans. Can�t imagine how the Koreans would embarrass themselves in the next world cup or olympics. Japan is still the best soccer nation in East Asia after all."
Alexander Chen

What a moron! Why do you bother taking up space on this board ? You have absolutely NO knowledge of sports, really! Sure this Corean team were favored to win it all but they lost in a penalty shootout, all penalty shootouts are just luck. If you watched the game, Corea throughly dominated the game, just bad luck they didn't score, maybe you should go to AOL soccer page and read about it.
Iran just defeated Japan, Iran is minnows in Asian soccer? HAHAHA! Hardly.
They won the title four times more than anyone else you clown. This was Japan's first trip to the finals. Corea has been in the finals 6 times! Winning three!
And this team was the same one from the World Cup? Either you're a liar or a non athletic geek, how could that be when you are only allowed 3 over age players. Asian matches are mostly made up of under 23 just like the Olympics.
With a name like "Chen" you sure don't sound Japanese but then again if I was Chinese I root for the Japanese too since Chinese can't even score a goal in three games during the World Cup.
Oh by the way, Corea will make it to the next World Cup in Germany, but I doubt China will. What the hell is Washu? Tell me how many golds were won by the Chinse men in boxing, karate, judo, taekwondo, wrestling compared to Corean men? HAHA!
You can have the swimming and 200 meters, you'll get creamed by the Americans anyway in the Olympics. Small country with limited athletic gene pool like Corea need to select where they can best use their talent.
Bob Costas once said " Corea is a small country but an Asian powerhouse"
Yeah, babbbbbieeee!
Per Capita the best. Pound for pound the best just like Roy Jones Jr.

"c-web,
Taiwan's sports emphasis is definitely not as aggressive as china's.Dont use that argument of yours to confuse yourself even more."
Coco

Huh? Can you rephrase that in English?
Hey Coco puffs, no Asian government spends more than China to foster its sports program. I heard they'll take 60 percent of Yao's salary. I'm sure that 60 % will go to develop some poor peasant Chinese kids in athletics.
More COMMUNISTS PROPAGANDA!
I don't blame Wang for not wanting to return to China, he doesn't want his dollars to support those commies.

Osaka Lad,
You make nooooo sense kid. Don't you think since China and Japan has sooooo much more people than Corea you have an advantage of selecting from a larger gene pool? Isn't this common sense??
But while China does better than Corea in overall medals won but if you calculate it per capita they fall wayyyyyyyy short. China win more medals simply because China has 26 times more people than Corea. Now, what's your another excuse why Japan always falling behind Corea even though you have three times more people?
Counter Puncher Sunday, October 13, 2002 at 20:03:22 (PDT) [152.163.188.38]

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