Yao Ming says Chinese basketball’s future behind decision to quit as CBA chairman

Yao Ming has said he quit as chairman of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) over the national team’s results, and to let his replacement have a full Olympic cycle to try and make things better.

News of the former NBA star’s resignation first surfaced on Wednesday, but was only officially confirmed 24-hours later at a meeting of the 10th Chinese Basketball Association Member Congress in Beijing, where vice-chairman Guo Zhenming was named as Yao’s successor.

Re-elected to his position in December 2022, Yao had two years left on his second term, but has paid the price for a tenure that coincided with a dip in fortunes for the men’s team, who failed to qualify for both the Tokyo and Paris Olympics, and issues with the game domestically.

While the women’s national team won consecutive gold medals at Asian Games in Jakarta and Hangzhou, and were runners-up at the World Cup in 2022, that was not enough to keep Yao in his position.

The 44-year-old has previously been critical of the men’s national team, labelling the players “slackers” and warning there was a “huge gap” between them and the world’s best teams.

“Unfortunately, the results and performance of the national team did not meet expectations,” he told state media. “The reason why I chose to leave the Chinese Basketball Association at this time is mainly based on considerations for the future of Chinese basketball.”