The 11th annual charity basketball match organized by the Yao Foundation, founded by former NBA star Yao Ming, took place in Macau over the weekend.
The multi-event session included not only the charity game between an All-Star Team from China and another representing an international side, but also a series of side events including a charity gala dinner, a basketball carnival, a campus visit, and other community activities.
The Charity Game has taken place in major cities across Greater China including Beijing, Taipei, Dongguan, Shanghai, Fuzhou, Hong Kong, Dalian, Nanning, and Wuhan.
For the 11th edition and in partnership with Galaxy Entertainment Group (GEG), the match took place on Sunday evening at the new Galaxy Arena.
The Chinese All-Star Team was composed of CBA (Chinese Basketball Association) champion players including Fang Shuo, Chen Linjian, Zhai Xiaochuan, Kyranbek Makel, Fan Ziming, Shi Desai, Du Bochao, Yi Jinhong, Yuan Shuai, and Zhang Zhaoxu. This team competed against International All-Star Team that featured players such as Jeremy Lin, Isaiah Thomas, Kenny Boynton, Thon Maker, and David Scottie James.
The event also attracted many celebrities from China’s basketball community, the sports industry, and various sectors of society.
At the end of the match, and even if the result was not the important part, the International All-Star Team won 147-144 in a game that was more like a quality entertainment performance, with players taking the opportunity to try some stunts they cannot risk during official matches to entertain the audience that nearly packed the Galaxy Arena.
As the Yao Foundation is all about giving children from the poorest regions of China a chance to grow and succeed, the game was also the perfect opportunity for some of the very young basketball stars to take the court and show their best skills in front of such a huge audience – and they did not disappoint.
Earlier on and as part of the extensive program, the Short Film “Team up Wuhan,” have had its Macau premiere, included in the Hive5 Sports Short Film Festival that was screening at Galaxy Cinemas.
In the press conference held on Saturday, Zhang Huawei, Deputy Secretary General of China Youth Development Foundation, on behalf of the organizers expressed gratitude to all sectors of Macau for their support of charitable causes.
Zhang noted the impact of the Yao Foundation Charity Games, noting how the event was paused during the pandemic.
“It is of great significance that Macau is hosting for the first time. We look forward to working together with the charitable and sports communities in Macau to take action together and promote the healthy growth of the next generation of the Chinese nation through sports,” Zhang said.
In representation of GEG, Buddy Lam, Executive Vice President of Corporate Office, said, “Upholding our corporate philosophy of ‘What is taken from the community is to be used for the good of the community’, over the years, GEG has proactively supported a wide array of large-scale sports events and activities in Macau through multi-pronged approaches, thereby enhancing the integration of ‘tourism + sports’ by contributing to Macau SAR Government’s ‘1+4’ adequate diversification development strategy. We are honored to be one of the co-organizers and title sponsors of this year’s Yao Foundation Charity Game, bringing together renowned national and overseas basketball players and offering the public a feast of basketball at Macau’s newest and most iconic Galaxy Arena. Through uniting the community through sports, we hope to elevate the public’s awareness of sports and charitable causes.”
