The Beijing Hour
Morning Edition
Rebecca Hume with you on this Monday, September 9th, 2013.
Welcome to the Beijing Hour, coming to you live from the Chinese capital.
Coming up on our program this morning...
Chinese president arrives in Tashkent for Uzbekistan visit
US representatives continue their campaign to get support for Syria action at home and abroad.
Egypt refers Muslim Brotherhood chief to the criminal court
Business
China’s exports and imports continue to rise through August
Sports
Lin Dan sails into top eight at National Games
Entertainments
Italian documentary Sacro GRA wins the top honor at the Venice Film Festival
First, let's check on what's happening on the weather front...
Weather
Beijing will see showers today, with a high of 27 degree Celsius in the daytime, and it will be overcast tonight with a low of 17.
In Shanghai, it will be overcast today, 30 the high, and it will be also overcast tonight, the low of 25 degrees Celsius.
Lhasa will have showers in the daytime the temperature's at 20, and tonight will have showers with a low of 19 degree Celsius.
Elsewhere in the world, staying in Asia
Islamabad, sunny, 31.
Kabul, sunny, with a high of 31.
And in North America
New York, sunny, with a high of 26 degrees.
Washington, overcast, highs of 31
Houston, thundershowers, 31.
Honolulu, overcast, 31.
Toronto, sunny, 18
Finally, on to South America,
Buenos Aires, overcast, 23.
And Rio de Janeiro is sunny with highs of 28 degrees Celsius.
There are several ways to keep in touch with us on the BJH
We are on Weibo that's weibo.com/beijinghour
You can also send us an email to [email protected]
Please do keep in touch we always like to hear your comments and feedback on the show.
Top News
Chinese president arrives in Tashkent for Uzbekistan visit
Anchor
As part of his central Asian tour, Chinese President Xi Jinping has arrived in Tashkent for a state visit to Uzbekistan.
Upon his arrival, the president is calling for further boosting their bilateral cooperation.
CRI's Mark Cavigli has more
In a written speech delivered upon his arrival, the Chinese President hailed the time-honored friendship between China and Uzbekistan, saying the Silk Road has linked the two peoples together for more than 2,000 years.
Xi Jinping says since the establishment of diplomatic relations 21 years ago, the two countries have witnessed an all-round and rapid development of bilateral ties.
The president adds that history has proved it is the correct strategic choice for them to pursue everlasting friendship and mutually beneficial cooperation.
Xi Jinping flew to the Uzbeki capital after wrapping up a state visit to Kazakhstan, which witnessed the signing of a series of cooperation documents between Chinese and Kazakh enterprises.
Xi Jinping has also urged entrepreneurs from China and Kazakhstan to boost cooperation.
"We have signed a joint statement to deepen the all-round strategic partnership between the two countries. The statement highlights the future development of China- Kazakhstan relations. We also signed a long term plan on the economic cooperation between China and Kazakhstan. The deal provides a legal basis and guidelines for our economic cooperation on a larger scope."
For his part, Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev said his country is willing to work with China to enhance coordination on development strategies and pursue common development.
After Uzbekistan, the Chinese president is to pay a state visit to Kyrgyzstan, where he will also attend a Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit.
For CRI, this is Marc Cavigli.
White House Chief of Staff on talk shows to make "strike Syria" case
US Secretary of State John Kerry says he has gained support from Arab League allies for a planned strike on Syria.
Kerry says that nations in support of a strike are now in double figures.
So far support includes America's key gulf allies Saudi Arabia, Qartar and the UAE.
Meanwhile, White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough is due to appear on all major morning talks shows to convince congress and the American public, that military action in Syria for its alledged chemical weapons attack is the right move.
Speaking on ABC's "This Week," McDonough claimed that evidence of the August 21st gassing is indisputable and an attack will send a message to Iran.
"Should there be consequences for his having used gases, chemical weapons, to kill more than a thousand of his own people, including more than 400 children. The answer to that question will be followed closely in Tehran, the answer to that question will be followed closely in Damascus, the answer to that question will be followed very closely by members of Lebanese Hezbollah."
It comes ahead of a planned speech by President Barack Obama on Tuesday.
Earlier, European Union's foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton, said on behalf of EU ministers that they are convinced the Syrian government is responsible for the August attack.
The top European diplomat added that a clear and strong response is needed.
But Ashton also added the Syrian crisis needs to be addressed through a UN process.
Also on Sunday, Kerry spoke over the phone with his Chinese counterpart, Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the issue.
In conversation, Wang stressed to Kerry that the Syria issue should be dealt with under the framework of the UN security Council.
Wang added that China remains opposed to the use of force in international relations.
Protest against military action on Syria held in Chicago
A large-scale protest against U.S. military action on Syria was held over the weekend in Chicago.
Headed by the Chicago anti-war committee and other anti-war organizations, the protest attracted hundreds of people including the elderly and children.
Some of the demonstrators held banners saying "No War on Syria" and "Pres. Obama: Return Your Nobel 'Peace' Prize".
Some waved the Syrian national flag.
One demonstrator showed a picture of a Syrian child who was killed in the war, demanding the Congress veto a military strike on Syria to avoid further tragedy and death.
Joe Iosbaker is a teacher in the University of Illinois at Chicago.
"Our country cannot pay for our schools. We cannot pay for our teachers. We cannot pay for our healthcare. We can't invest to create jobs for all of the people who need jobs. Spending another trillion dollars on war is a terrible thing. That money needs to stay here, to take care of jobs and healthcare and education."
He added that the Chicago public school system closed 49 middle and primary schools to cut the debts and budget deficit, forcing more than 3,000 members of staff to lose their jobs over this summer.
Sami Slifo is a Syrian Chicago resident.
"I hope and I wish this war never starts in Syria, because besides losing my beautiful country, I will lose people from my family, my big Syrian family. I hope this war does not start."
After the rally, the demonstrators also marched along the busy areas of the city.
The march caused severe traffic jams.
Large numbers of police officers were dispatched to maintain order.
Egypt refers Muslim Brotherhood chief to criminal court for violence
The Egyptian prosecution is now refering the Muslim Brotherhood's General Guide Mohamed Badie to the criminal court for inciting violence and murder in recent clashes in Giza.
Another fourteen members of the brotherhood are also accused of the same charges.
The date for the trial has not yet been decided.
This is the second time Badie has been referred to the criminal court.
The first hearing was scheduled for August 25th but Badie failed to appear in court for security reasons.
The trial has now been postponed to October 29th.
More than 3,500 members of the brotherhood have been arrested since the ouster of president Mohamed Morsi on July 3rd.
Egyptian Jihadists claim responsibility for attacking minister
A Sinai-based Islamist Jihadist group have claimed responsibility for a recent bomb attack targeting Egypt's interior minister.
On Thursday, Egyptian Interior Minister Mohamed Ibrahim survived an assassination attempt when a bomb exploded near his convoy.
The blast saw one police recruit killed and 24 others injured.
The Jihadist group has vowed further attacks against the interior minister and Defense Minister Abdel Fattah Sisi.
The group is blaming Sisi and Ibrahim for killing hundreds in dispersal operations against the supporters of ousted president Mohamed Morsi last month.
Egyptian authorites have arrested some 80 persons, following the failed attempt to assassinate Ibrahim.
Israel allocates 5,000 work permits for Palestinians from the West Bank
The Israeli cabinet has approved the allocation of 5,000 work permits to Palestinians from the West Bank.
The proposal has been submitted by Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon.
Israel says the work opportunities are aimed at assisting the Palestinian economy.
It comes as part of a slew of Israeli good-will gestures to the Palestinian Authority following the recent resumption of Israeli- Palestinian peace talks.
Israel and Palestine restarted their peace negotiations on July 30th in Washington after a three-year halt.
Currently, there are 50-thousand Palestinians authorized to work in Israel, 39-thousand of which are permanent.
Sergei Sobyanin won first round of Moscow mayoral election
Acting mayor of Moscow Sergei Sobyanin is poised to win in the Moscow mayor elections.
Exit polls show Sobyanin, a key ally of Russian president Vladmir Putin, has garnered 53 percent of the vote.
His major rival, opposition leader Alexei Navalny, garnered just 32 percent of the vote, while Communist Party candidate Ivan Melnikov came in third, receiving 8 percent of the vote.
The head of Sobyanin's headquarters, Moscow's First Deputy Mayor Ludmila Shvetsova said it was a "confident victory" for her candidate.
"This is a victory. This is a victory. A normal and confident victory. If this percentage remains, then it still fits those plans we had made for ourselves. I had been asked recently in one of the interviews what percent of the vote I expect. And I said, from 51 to 65 percent."
But voting has been disputed by opposition candidate Alexei Navalny.
Navalny's campaign team say its own exit polls indicated Sobyanin had not crossed the threshold needed for an outright win.
They are demanding a second round of voting.
The mayoral elections are the first to be held in ten years and the first since the Kremlin reversed President Putin's 2004 decree abolishing direct elections for the Moscow mayor and other regional leaders.
HK Watch Show
Anchor
The world's largest watch and clock fair has wrapped up in Hong Kong.
As CRI's Li Dong reports, the fair has attracted buyers from all over the wolrd.
Reporter
This year's fair showcases more than 750 exhibitors from 18 countries and regions. Hundreds of designs are available at the world's largest watch and clock fair in Hong Kong.
Here watches are art ... or at least inspired by art, as is the case with Acestar Concept' s new collection of Vincent Van Gogh watches designed in collaboration with the Van Gogh Museum.
Watches in this range cost between USD 515 to USD 1, 030.
Esther Wong, the president of a Hong Kong based watch company, devised the range and brought the relevant licenses from the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. She says the look of a watch is everything.
"From what I believe, I think that a lot of the consumers are still looking for new design. Apart from, of course, the brand name that they have liked; the more important element when they pick the watch is that they like the style of the watch. And as well very important is, the specialty, whether your watch has a story or have something special. So I think these are more important,"
While the economy in the west has been steadily improving, buyers are still eyeing on the booming Asian market.
Among them is Julian Seume, the management assistant of a Germany-based watch company.
They recently manufactured a special Edition in collaboration with the Formula 1 Racer Jochen Mass. It is limited to only 100 watches worldwide and so far, half of them are already sold out. The watches cost USD 1,900. Seume says they value the Asian market.
"The Asian markets are growing and growing over the last years. They become more important for the world and they focus on special products. I think with the growth they earn more money and they want to spend it for high quality products, also in our range watches. This is, compared to the German market, the European market, a bit different, because we have a certain quality and some of those people looking for cheap products. And here, the Asian people want quality product."
Since 2006, all products of Hong Kong origin can be imported into the Chinese mainland at zero tariffs, encouraging the growth of some Hong Kong based watch companies, including Memorigin.
They have recently cooperated with Warner Brothers to launch the "Man of Steel" Tourbillon Watch, a timepiece worthy of Superman himself.
William Shum, Memorigin's director says that it is worth putting more resources into the Asian market.
"The future trend is going to be the whole of Asian market. Although the overall global economy is slowing down and is affected by other factors, the Asian market, especially Chinese market, is certainly the trend; and is the market that a lot of our watch brands and other luxury watch brands would hope to penetrate. Therefore, for our future plan, we will follow this path and penetrate into the Greater China's market, South East Asia's markets and the developing countries' markets as they are all highly profitable,"
Apart from cooperating with movie makers, Shum intends to keep working on the Chinese zodiac series, which is popular with Chinese consumers.
Hong Kong is a leading exporter of watches and clocks in the world, with a total of US$5.4 billion worth of timepieces, parts and components exported in the first seven months of this year, according to the Hong Kong Trade Development Council.
For CRI, I am Li Dong.
Native English Teachers in Bilingual Kindergartens in China [By Xu Fei]
Anchor
As the popularity of bilingual kindergartens is growing here in China, some educators note that the teachers, especially those native English speakers, should have adequate qualifications to maintain a truly bilingual educational environment.
CRI's XYee has more.
Reporter
As China becomes more international, domestic parents are starting to favor foreign approaches to educating their children.
As a result, English language classes have become a key part of today's curriculum in China, particularly for younger children, as Adele Bai, General Manager of Kids and Teens Education First, explains.
"Why there're more and more kindergartens providing the English courses is because people knew that the best age for a child to learn a foreign language is between three and six years old. Like EF, we have a lot of students, and the parents have already accepted this kind of knowledge about sending their children to study English at a very young age."
The increasing demand for a Western-style kindergarten has caused bilingual kindergartens to boom in China.
Likewise, a native speaker or foreign teacher in the classroom adds value to these kindergartens, which usually charge parents high fees for enrollment.
However, according to Sun Ruiling, a pre-school education expert with the Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press, a native English speaker without any background in preschool education might not be even able to motivate students to take interest in their English studies.
"Employing a foreign teacher has a noticeable advantage, as he or she is a native speaker. However, these foreigners did not major in preschool education. Though their English is pretty good, they have no idea where to start to teach and cultivate an interest among the young kids. As a result, young kids give no interest in their teaching, and even worse, their dislike of English studies might grow."
Sun Ruiling's feelings are shared by Bai.
.
Bai added that this is not for the teachers alone to work out. Kindergartens and preschool institutions also bear responsibility in helping English teachers develop their educating skills. She cited her EF schools in Beijing as an example.
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"When we select them, we will help them develop their knowledge about the children, about the particular teaching skills and about the Chinese students."
Senior kindergarten teachers from overseas - particularly those from the United States, Canada, the UK or Australia - can earn generous salaries in Beijing.
The demand for Western-style kindergartens is not confined to first-tier cities. The trend is also taking off in second-tier cities, thanks to growing wealth and increased personal incomes throughout China.
For CRI, I'm XYee.
Biz Reports
Let's get a preview of what's happening in the business world this week.
Here's CRI's Marc.
Reporter:
This week, the focus will shift to the health of the US consumer and a slew of China economic data.
The major releases this week include reports on consumer credit, retail sales, and consumer sentiment.
Still, President Obama's efforts to convince lawmakers to back his request for a military strike on Syria could further rattle the stock markets.
A Senate vote is likely to come this week.
China is to release its August inflation rate and Producer Price index later today.
Tuesday will see China report its industrial production, fixed-asset investments and retail sales data.
Apple meanwhile will host a press conference on that day.
On Wednesday, the UK is slated to report its unemployment figures.
South Africa will release its July factory output data.
Thursday, Brazil will release its monthly survey of retail trade.
On Friday, the US will report its retail sales for August.
Bank lending figure here in China will also be out on the same day.
China's exports rise 7.2 pct in August
Anchor
Latest data shows China's exports continued to rise throughout August, seeing a 7.2-percent increase year on year.
General Administration of Customs says that imports also saw an increase of 7-percent from a year earlier.
However trade surplus widened by 8.4 percent year on year to 28.8 billion U.S dollars.
Zheng Yuesheng is the spokeman of the GAC.
"With the help of a series of measures to maintain stable foreign trade growth, China's foreign trade will continue to rise steadily, but the quality of growth will be improved in the second half of the year."
Trade with ASEAN nations led the gain by climbing more than 13-percent.
The United States, China's second-largest trade partner saw it's imports and exports revive 9.2-percent in August.
Trade volume with the European Union also rose 3.2 percent.
While exports to Japan contracted for the seventh straight month.
Official data shows exports of electronics and machinery accounts for nearly 56-percent of total exports.
Trade volume of those products grew by 6.7 percent in August, hitting 106-billion US dollars.
For more on the these figures, we're joined live on the line now by Mike Bastin, Visiting Professor at China's University of International Business and Economics.
（Q&A with Mike Bastin）
Questions:
1. This is upbeat data for China, can we say the economy is headed out of a potential slowdown and will see stablized growth in the latter half of this year?
2. What's about the breakdown of trade growth with China's major partners - particularly as the Fed is poised to pull back its easy money policies at any moment? How do yout think this could pan out over the next few months?
3. Do you think their are any concerns for the economy if China continues to crack down on shadow banking?
4. What's your projection on China's sustainable growth rate to assist its Small to Medium Enterprises's to survive?
Back Anchor:
Mike Bastin, Visiting Professor at China's University of International Business and Economics.
Greek premier says economic pain will ease next year
Greece's Prime Minister, Antonis Samaras says the country is on course to meet its bailout targets and it's economic woes will ease in 2014.
Samaras promises the country's economy will turn to growth next year, terminating the 6-year slump.
Latest data shows Greece has seen the narrowest annual decline in economic output in nearly 3-years in the second quarter this year.
GDP shrank 3.8 percent over the period with the help of a rebound in tourism.
It is believed Greece will have a growth rate of 0.6 percent in 2014 and economic growth is projected to pick up faster after 2015.
Greece's GDP dropped 23-percent since 2008 and the country's unemployment rate stands at 27 percent.
Volkswagen cutting costs on weak demand in Europe
German car maker Volkswagen is cutting it's costs on sluggish demand in Western Europe for this year and next.
VW's Chief Financial Officer Hans Dieter Poetsch says vehicle sales in the region will drop to that of almost 10 years ago.
Meanwhile, he also predicts sales won't see any substantial increase in the coming years.
Volkswagen is targeting its whole year profit for 2013 at 11.5 billion euros.
Taiwan uni. creates 'smart tooth' that can track your daily habits
Researchers in Taiwan have created a smart tooth that can track your eating, drinking, smoking, even speaking and coughing habits.
The technology which is not yet on sale to the public, has proven to be nearly 94 percent accurate in detecting specific mouth activities.
The smart tooth uses a chip-embedded sensor inside an artificial tooth which shaped like a conventional crown.
Kevin Li is one of the researchers responsible for the smart device.
"A crown must be custom made so it is expensive, but electronic products are mass produced so the cost is low. With a little extra money, a person can receive a sensor embedded smart tooth, to monitor your activities."
If developed for a consumer market, the information would be eventually sent to a person's cellphone via Bluetooth technology.
Coastal phenomenon attract tourists to E China's Zhejiang
The famous Qiantang River tidal bore is attracting thousands of crowds to the coastal city in China's Zhejiang province.
Scientists are predicting the surging tides will be greater than usual this year as recorded low tide waves are half a meter higher than last year's average.
"I heard about this event, about this natural event. Yeah, we organized with a group to come here."
The surging tide comes on the eighteenth day of the eighth lunar month or around the time of the Mid-Autumn Festival.
The gravity force is said to cause turbulent waves as the Sun and the Moon align with the Earth.
Headline News
Chinese president arrives in Tashkent for Uzbekistan visit
As part of his central Asian tour, Chinese President Xi Jinping has arrived in Tashkent for a state visit to Uzbekistan.
In a written speech delivered upon his arrival, the Chinese President hailed the time-honored friendship between China and Uzbekistan, saying the Silk Road has linked the two peoples together for more than 2,000 years.
The president adds that history has proved it is the correct strategic choice for them to pursue everlasting friendship and mutually beneficial cooperation.
After Uzbekistan, the Chinese president is to pay a state visit to Kyrgyzstan, where he will also attend a Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit.
White House Chief of Staff on talk shows to make "strike Syria" case
US Secretary of State John Kerry says he has gained support from Arab League allies for a planned strike on Syria.
Kerry says that nations in support of a strike are now in double figures.
So far support includes America's key gulf allies Saudi Arabia, Qartar and the UAE.
Meanwhile, White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough is due to appear on all major morning talks shows to convince congress and the American public, that military action in Syria for its alledged chemical weapons attack is the right move.
It comes ahead of a planned speech by President Barack Obama on Tuesday.
Earlier, European Union's foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton, said on behalf of EU ministers that they are convinced the Syrian government is responsible for the August attack.
Also on Sunday, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi stressed that the Syria issue should be dealt with under the framework of the UN security Council.
Wang added that China remains opposed to the use of force in international relations.
Egypt refers Muslim Brotherhood chief to criminal court for violence
The Egyptian prosecution is now refering the Muslim Brotherhood's General Guide Mohamed Badie to the criminal court for inciting violence and murder in recent clashes in Giza.
Another fourteen members of the brotherhood are also accused of the same charges.
The date for the trial has not yet been decided.
This is the second time Badie has been referred to the criminal court.
The first hearing was scheduled for August 25th but Badie failed to appear in court for security reasons.
The trial has now been postponed to October 29th.
More than 3,500 members of the brotherhood have been arrested since the ouster of president Mohamed Morsi on July 3rd.
(Call-in)China's exports rise 7.2 pct in August
Latest data shows China's exports continued to rise throughout August, seeing a 7.2-percent increase year on year.
General Administration of Customs says that imports also saw an increase of 7-percent from a year earlier.
However trade surplus widened by 8.4 percent year on year to 28.8 billion U.S dollars.
Trade with ASEAN nations led the gain by climbing more than 13-percent.
Newspaper Picks
Beijing News
Businesswoman involved in former railway minister's case charged
Summary:
Ding Shumiao, a businesswoman linked to the corruption case against China's former railway minister has been charged with bribery and illegal business activities.
Ding intervened in bidding for dozens of railway projects through railway ministry staff members and was reported to be engaged in illegal business operations valued at 179 billion yuan.
Shanghai Daily
16 arrested over claims of online extortion
Summary:
Police have arrested 16 people accused of blackmailing companies by pretending to be Party and government officials or reporters and threatening to post damaging information about them online.
The suspects were involved in more than 120 cases and extorted a total of more than 3 million yuan.
Global Times
Police raid underground casino
Summary:
Police in Shanghai have arrested more than 60 gamblers and employees after raiding an underground casino.
The casino was taking at least 1 million yuan in bets each day.
It had been operating in secret out of a commercial building for several months.
Yanzhao Metropolitan Daily
Exhaust may have hurt 19 students Summary:
Poisonous exhaust from factories may have injured 19 primary students in Yueqing, Zhejiang province.
The students have suffered nosebleeds and headaches.
Surrounding enterprises are to be suspended for a thorough overhaul.
South China Metropolitan Daily
City uses GPS to curb corruption
Summary:
Authorities in Zhangqiu, Shandong province have installed GPS equipment in all public vehicles.
The system will issue warnings to a monitoring system when public vehicles enter high-end hotel areas and tourists spots.
Public vehicles are also required to be marked and banned from roads during holidays.
China Daily
Beijing set to host global tourism center
Summary:
A tourism center, located in Shijingshan district, will showcase the scenery and attractions of more than 60 global cities through the use of digital displays and three-dimensional technology.
A trial run for the experience center will start on Thursday as one of the major events during the Fragrant Hill Summit for world tourism cities.
After the trial run, the center will open to the public during the National Day holiday in October.
Beijing Times
Heroic teacher on campus for postgraduate studies
Summary:
Zhang Lili, a high school teacher who lost her legs in a traffic accident while trying to save several students last year, has begun her studies on special education as a graduate student at Beijing Normal University.
Zhang was dubbed "China's most beautiful teacher" after her heroic deed.
Sports
Lin Dan sails into top eight at National Games
During the ongoing National Games,
Badminton superstar Lin Dan has moved effortlessly through to the top eight.
Lin stays on course to meet Chen Long from Fujian Province if both make it to the final, after being placed in opposite halves of the draw.
It comes as the world No. 2 also advanced after a one-sided 21-11, 21-12 win over Guo Kai of Zhejiang Province in the second round.
If Lin wins the men's singles title, he will set up another new record by becoming the first player to claim the title for the third consecutive time.
In other action,
Zhejiang's pole vaulter Li Ling claimed the title in the women's event with a new national record of 4.65 meter.
In the highly anticipated men's 100m race, Beijing's pinup sprinter Zhang Peimeng, who set a new national record of 10.00 seconds at the IAAF World Championships in Moscow last month, lived up to the expectation to snatch gold in 10.08.
Beijing's Li Jinzhe equaled his personal best of 8.34 meters to win the men's long jump event.
In the women's shot put event, Olympic and world bronze medalist Gong Lijiao continued her dominance in national arenas, winning the gold with her third round hurl of 19.75 meters.
Wrestling Champion Liu Deli
Anchor
China's Olympic wrestler Liu De Li was the mens 120kg wrestling champion at this year's National Games.
CRI's Jordan Lee sat down with Liu after his win.
Reporter
At over 2 meters tall, Liu De Li towers over almost everyone in China. He even made his 120 kilogram competitor in Saturday night's final seem a bit small.
Liu secured the national title in the mens 120 greco-roman division for the third time after defeating Shandong's Meng Qiang.
The 34-year old from Heilongjiang wasn't originally a wrestler. He only adopted the sport after his basketball coach suggested he give it a shot.
I started wrestling when I was 20 years old. Before I was a basketball player. But then the coach at my sports school saw me play some basketball games, and afterwards he redirected me towards wrestling.
Liu's height and natural strength made him an immediate success.
He began sweeping all the domestic competitions, and was crowned the Asian Wrestling Champion in 2007.
He represented China at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics, but failed to medal.
The moment Liu won on Saturday night, he let out a mighty roar and ran around the mat with both hands raised in the victory sign.
It was a display of emotion that the wrestler attributed to this being his last national games appearance.
"It was the perfect ending to my career. I paid a lot for the past four years."
After winning, Liu ran over to where his wife and baby daughter were watching from the stands.
He said he feels some guilt because his training took time away from his family.
I owe them. During my wife's pregnancy and the birth of my child, I feel like I didn't fulfill my duty as a father and a husband.
Lots of athletes would be thrilled to see their children follow in their athletic footsteps.
But Liu says no way. He does not want his daughter pursuing wrestling as a sport.
"I don't want her to wrestle. I'm tall, but she's just a girl, she shouldn't wrestle. Wrestling is too intense for girls. The girls who do wrestle are too big and strong, I don't want her to compete against that".
Liu has thrown hints that his retirement from the sport is pending, but he has not completely slammed the door on the possibility of his competing at the 2016 Olympics in Rio.
For CRI, I'm Jordan Lee
Paes and Stepanek beat Peya and Soares to win men's doubles
Tennis now and at the US Open
Leander Paes and Radek Stepanek have thrashed Alexander Peya and Bruno Soares in the men's doubles final in straight sets 6-1 6-3.
Paes and Stepanek beat the top seeds, the Bryan brothers, in the semi-finals.
Their last title came in the 2012 Australia Open.
In the men's singles,
World no. 2 Rafael Nadal knocked out Richard Gasquet in straight sets, 6-4, 7-6, 6-2 to book his place in the final.
He will take on Novak Djokovic:
"Talking about a final, I want to play against a player that I have more chances to win. But I play against him. I played against him a lot of times. Always we played very exciting matches."
In the women's final,
Top seeded Serena Williams is taking on second seeded Victoria Azarenka.
At the moment....
Thomas Bjorn won the European Masters
In Golf,
Thomas Bjorn won the European Masters for a second time in his career on Sunday , beating Craig Lee on the first hole of a play-off.
"As I've said the last couple of weeks, I've been way too hard on myself and not done the right things, and that hasn't been good and I just made sure when I came in here, I wanted to not let myself down and really fight all the way to the end, and that was.... I did that, and that's probably the thing I'm most proud of."
France's Victor Dubuisson finished in third place, one stroke off the pace on 19-under, with Alejandro Canizares of Spain a further shot behind in fourth.
At the Helsingborg Open in Sweden:
Australia's Rebecca Artis has completed a remarkable comeback to seal a one-stroke victory at eight-under par on Sunday.
The win also earns Artis a place at next week's Evian Championship in France, the final Major of the year.
Home favourite Caroline Hedwall finished second and Valentine Derrey of France finished third.
Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel wins the Italian Grand Prix at a canter
Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel has claimed his win at the Italian Grand Prix to tighten his hold on the 2013 drivers' championship.
It was Vettel's third career win at Monza - his first was with Toro Rosso in 2008 and then Red Bull in 2011 - his sixth of the season and 32nd overall, moving him level with Alonso's total wins.
Speaking to the media, Lewis Hamilton all but admitted his title challenge was finished for another campaign.
He is now 81 points behind Vettel putting him back in third place with only 175 available.
Spanish Fernando Alonso is 53-points behind Vettel in second with seven races to go.
The championship will now head to Singapore for round 13 on September 22nd.
Wrestling gets reinstated for 2020 Olympics
Seven months after losing its Olympic status, wrestling has been reinstated for the 2020 Games.
The sport easily defeated bids from baseball-softball and squash.
Jacques Rogge, President of International Olympic Committee.
"Ladies and gentleman I will announce the results. Votes given: 95. Participants: 95. Abstentions: 0. Void: 0. Valid ballots: 95. Majority: 48. With 49 votes, wrestling has been selected for the 2020 Games. Baseball/softball has obtained 24 votes and squash 22 votes. Congratulations to wrestling and thank you very much to baseball/softball and squash for having made very good candidature."
Wrestling, which has ancient roots in the Olympics, will now join the programme of the 2020 Games, which were awarded to Tokyo on Saturday.
The sport goes back to the ancient Olympics in Greece and has been on the programme of every modern games except 1900.
Entertainment
Venice Film Festival Wrap Up
Sacro GRA, an Italian documentary about Rome's Grande Raccordo Anulare ring road, has taken home the Golden Lion prize at the 70th Venice Film Festival.
Filmmaker Gianfranco Rosi's film marks the first time a documentary has ever taken home the coveted prize.
It is also the first Italian film to win the award in 15-years.
Rosi responded by saying it was an incredible honor to win the award and he didn't expect to win the prize with a documentary. He went on to say choosing his was an act of courage and a barrier had been broken.
Other winner's include Taiwan-born director Tsai Ming-liang who took home the Grand Jury Prize for his film Stray Dogs.
Tsai has revealed Stray Dogs may be his last film though he admits he doesn't know what destiny's plans are for him.
The Best Screenplay Award went to Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope for their film Philomena starring Dame Judi Dench.
The Silver Lion for Best Director went to Greek filmmaker Alexandros Avranas for his piece Miss Violence.
Italian actress Elena Cotta took home Best Actress for her role in A Street in Palmero.
Throughout the entire film Cotta does not speak one line of dialogue.
Toronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival is in full swing with major stars coming out to be a part of the action.
US megaactor Brad Pitt has attended the premiere of 12 Years A Slave, which tells the true tale of Solomon Northup, a violinist who was kidnapped and sold into slavery for 12-years in 1841.
Pitt's production company Plan B produced the film which was directed by British filmmaker Steve McQueen.
"We were big fans of Steve McQueen from Hunger and we started talking to him about what he most wanted to do next and he asked the question, asked the question that no American asked, why aren't there more films about slavery?"
Other going-ons at the festival include UK actor Idris Elba premiering his new film Mandela in which he appears as the historical South African revolutionary Nelson Mandela.
Elba opened up about playing the iconic figure.
"There were massive challenges, huge challenges everything from just the performance aspect, I don't look like Mr. Mandela, how do I encapsulate this man. Also just to the weight of playing a living legend, someone that everybody can do some sort of impression of, you know. The challenges were varied."
The Toronto International Film Festival runs until September 15th.
Actor B. Cumberbatch Doesn't Think Assange Will Support Film About Him
UK actor Benedict Cumberbatch has admitted he doesn't believe Wikileaks cofounder Julian Assange will endorse the upcoming film The Fifth Estate.
In the film Cumberbatch portrays Assange who is now living in the Ecuadorian embassy in London after being granted asylum by the South American country.
The film, which opened the Toronto International Film Festival, charts the early days of Assange's whistle-blowing website.
Cumberbatch did not elaborate on why he doesn't think Assange will back the film.
Bruno Mars to Perform at Superbowl
US singer songwriter Bruno Mars has been tapped to perform at next year's American football Superbowl halftime show.
Mars follows in the footsteps of past Superbowl performers such as Michael Jackson, Madonna, and The Who.
The world famous singer announced the news over twitter and released a promotional video for the event.
Mars has achieved a total of 11 top-10 singles on the Billboard 100 chart to date including his song Locked Out of Heaven.
When performing at the 2004 Halftime show Justin Timberlake and Janet Jackson created controversy when Jackson's top slipped revealing her exposed breast on network television.
Other stars to have performed during the even include Beyonce, U2, and Bruce Springsteen.
Recapping our top headlines....
Chinese president arrives in Tashkent for Uzbekistan visit
US representatives continue their campaign to get support for Syria action at home and abroad.
Egypt refers Muslim Brotherhood chief to the criminal court
Business
China’s exports and imports continue to rise through August
On behalf of the Beijing Hour team, I'm Rebecca Hume in Beijing, hoping you'll join us for our next edition of the Beijing Hour to open a window to the world together! |