Chinese NBA superstar Yao Ming is in Manila for a “Philippines-China Years of Friendly Exchanges” diplomatic event.
The lovable 7-foot 6-inch, 310-pound former Houston Rockets center flew in with his current team, the Shanghai Sharks, on Friday for a few days of clinics and exhibition games in the Philippines.
The Sharks are holding a basketball clinic for disadvantaged youth at the Multi-Purpose Arena of PSC-Philsports in Pasig City today. Tomorrow they’ll play a game against the Smart Gilas Team and Tuesday they’ll face the PBA Selection.
The Philippines-China Years of Friendly Exchanges were agreed upon by President Benigno S. Aquino III and former Chinese President Hu Jintao in 2011.
They certainly take on added significance now, considering recent tension between the Philippines and China over South China Sea territorial claims. Adding to the mix, an illegal Chinese fishing boat wrecked in a Philippine marine sanctuary at Tubbataha Reef near Palawan in April, and was found to be carrying hundreds of illegally trafficked and endangered dead pangolins.
The Years of Friendly Exchanges program is a “joint initiative by the Philippines and China to encourage more people-to-people exchanges to strengthen understanding and mutual trust between them,” according to the Department of Foreign Affairs.
Yao Ming and the Sharks will also visit Vice President Jejomar C. Binay at the Coconut Palace before leaving the Philippines on May 9.
Photo: Yao Ming greets Philippine children at a clinic today in Pasig City. Credit: Xinhua
