Gray Forum
football

 
Nieuw onderwerp plaatsen   Reageren    Gray Forum // Voorbeeld Forum
Vorige onderwerp :: Volgende onderwerp  
Auteur Bericht
DMT



Geregistreerd op: 08 Mei 2018
Berichten: 422

BerichtGeplaatst: 29-06-2018 03:52:09    Onderwerp: football Reageren met citaat
"
As the Vancouver Canucks held their first practice in Shanghai before their exhibition game with the Los Angeles Kings Saldi Scarpe Donna Nike Air Presto Uncaged Ultra Rosa , a dense fog settled over the ice. The humidity in the arena was high and the players could barely see the puck.


Large dehumidifiers were rolled in and the mist eventually cleared, but the NHL has perhaps a bigger visibility problem in China — a country with little tradition of winter sports, hockey included. The league is hoping to turn that around with a major push in the country, beginning with its first two preseason games between the Canucks and Kings in Shanghai and Beijing this week.


The timing couldn’t be better for the NHL. With Beijing set to host the 2022 Winter Olympics, the government is putting a massive emphasis on developing winter sports. Hockey training programs and youth leagues are expanding across China, and the nation’s first professional team Scarpe Nike Air Presto Uncaged Ultra Bianche Saldi , the Kunlan Red Star, plays in Russia’s Kontinental Hockey League.


With interest on the rise, the NHL believes it now has an opportunity to crack a market that has traditionally been more fixated on basketball and soccer.


“You don’t quite know what to expect the first time the game is coming here, but I’ve always believed that hockey is a game you need to see live,” Los Angeles Kings coach John Stevens said after Wednesday’s practice. “And once you see it live, you become hooked as a fan.”


A glance at the numbers shows just how far the NHL has to go. According to the International Ice Hockey Federation Scarpe Nike Air Presto Uncaged Ultra Nere Saldi , China has just 1,101 registered players, compared with nearly 556,000 in the U.S. and more than 631,000 in Canada.


And the fan base in a nation of more than 1.2 billion people is still in its infancy. On Weibo, the Chinese equivalent of Twitter Scarpe Nike Air Presto BR Rosse Saldi , the NHL has just 47,000 followers, some of whom are obviously new to the sport. (One posted a question about the temperature of the arena and what was suitable to wear to the game.) The NBA, which hosted its first preseason exhibition games in China in 2004, boasts more than 33 million followers on Weibo.


“We’re learning a lot about how to market here and we’re learning a lot about how tickets are sold,” says David Proper Scarpe Nike Air Presto BR Nere Saldi , the NHL’s executive vice president of media and international strategy. “We’re just viewing this as Year 1 of a multi-year project and in Year 1 we may not knock it out of the park . but we can still build over time.”


Media exposure certainly helps. State broadcaster CCTV now televises five games per week to Chinese audiences and the Internet giant Tencent streams 14 games per week on its digital platforms, including the Stanley Cup playoffs.


The NHL also has an influential partner on the ground in Zhou Yunjie, the billionaire founder of a Chinese drinks packaging company who has devoted significant time and resources to building the game he fell in love with as a youth in Beijing. Zhou’s company, ORG Packaging, is the presenting partner for this week’s exhibition games.


“Hockey was actually quite common in northern China back in the ’60s and ’70s, so there is a foundation among the kids in those areas Scarpe Donna Nike Air Presto BR Rosa Saldi ,” Zhou told The Associated Press at his company’s newly opened hockey training base in a Beijing suburb, which includes a fully stocked gym, physical therapy room and a hotel for players attending training camps.


Zhou said China’s hockey revival should focus on both universities and a professional league, using the North American, northern European and Russian systems as models.


“It will take time before ice hockey really becomes like a religion with young people as it is in the West,” he said. “But ice hockey will definitely catch on with lots of kids.”


One thing that will certainly help is developing a home-grown star similar to Yao Ming in basketball and Li Na in tennis. There are promising signs on this front Scarpe Uomo Nike Air Presto Flyknit Ultra Grigie Bianche Saldi , too.


Song Andong became the first China-born player to be drafted in the NHL two years ago, selected by the New York Islanders. The 20-year-old Song has committed to play at Cornell this season.


On Monday, the Vancouver Canucks signed 21-year-old Sun Zehao to an amateur tryout contract to serve as the team’s third goaltender for the China preseason games.


“He’s working with our goalie coach,” Vancouver coach Travis Green said. “He liked how quick (Sun) was, how competitive he was. . I just think it’s a great experience for him.”

The Vancouver Canucks newly signed player Sun Zehao watches the Vancouver Canucks’ players practice in Shanghai The Vancouver Canucks’ players practice at the foggy Mercedes-Benz Arena in Shanghai Scarpe Nike Air Presto Flyknit Ultra Bianche Saldi , China on Sept.19, 2017 The Vancouver Canucks’ players practice at the foggy Mercedes-Benz Arena in Shanghai, China on Sept.19, 2017

The NHL should also get a boost in China as excitement builds for the 2022 Olympics. The league angered its players by deciding not to interrupt its season to allow them to take part in the 2018 Games in South Korea in February. That stance may change for 2022 in the much larger Chinese market.


To some, skipping the Pyeongchang Olympics is a missed opportunity to gain a bigger foothold in China.


“With 2022 coming up, winter sports are taking the leading focus of all sports in China right now — more so than football Scarpe Nike Air Presto SE Woven Blu Saldi ,” said Mark Dreyer, founder of the China Sports Insider website. “They’ll be promoting the Korea Olympics more than ever before.”


For now, the league is focused on taking its first baby steps in China, giving spectators in Shanghai and Beijing a good show.


“It’s going to be pretty cool, especially for people who have never real

PARIS, Nov. 29 (Xinhua) -- Forme. Casemiro Brazil Jersey Cheap Switzerland Soccer Jerseys Gustav Svensson Sweden Jersey Marc Bartra Spain Jersey Marco Fabian Mexico Jersey Mario Gomez Germany Jersey Cheap Team North America Jerseys Cheap Dallas Stars Jerseys Cheap Buffalo Sabres Jerseys Wholesale Red Wings Jerseys
Terug naar boven
Profiel bekijken Stuur privébericht
Nieuw onderwerp plaatsen   Reageren    Gray Forum // Voorbeeld Forum Tijden zijn in GMT + 1 uur
Pagina 1 van 1

 
Ga naar:  
Je mag geen nieuwe onderwerpen plaatsen in dit subforum
Je mag geen reacties plaatsen in dit subforum
Je mag je berichten niet bewerken in dit subforum
Je mag je berichten niet verwijderen in dit subforum
Je mag niet stemmen in polls in dit subforum


Wilt u geen reclame op dit forum en genieten van extra voordelen? Klik dan vlug hier voor meer informatie!
 
Powered by phpBB and Andrew Charron
immo op Realo
Maak snel, eenvoudig en gratis uw eigen forum: Gratis Forum