Topic: News: Chinese athletes to train, compete at NMU

[Chris Ⓐ LeRoux]

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Chinese athletes to train, compete at NMU
By Jo-Ann Barnas

For 10 days in October, a unique cultural exchange will take place at the U.S. Olympic Education Center at Northern Michigan University.

Athletes from four sports teams in China -- men's Greco-Roman wrestling, weightlifting, boxing and women's freestyle wrestling -- will train alongside U.S. Olympic hopefuls before gathering for a goodwill competition Oct. 23 at the Berry Events Center. The event will be open to the public.

It will be the first time Chinese athletes from four sports will compete at the same facility in the United States, said Jeff Kleinschmidt, program director of the U.S. Olympic Education Center.

During the past 10 months, NMU and the USOEC have worked hard to develop strong international ties with the Chinese. In October 2006, the university sent a delegation abroad, led by NMU president Les Wong. Two months later, at the invitation of the Chinese boxing federation, a group of USOEC athletes traveled to Yangzhou City for a competition.

When another invitation arrived to compete last February, Olympic boxing hopeful DeRae Crane said he jumped at the chance to go. The tournament was in Yancheng, north of Shanghai.

"The trip changed my life," said Crane, a senior marketing major at Northern. "Before, my motivation for doing a lot of things -- I was motivated by money. After going to China, I can say now that it's more important to be motivated by happiness."

Kleinschmidt, who has been to China twice, said: "I was amazed at the contrast between old and new in China. You can be going down a road and see someone riding a bicycle from the 1920s next to someone driving a Mercedes."

When the Chinese contingent arrives in Marquette, Kleinschmidt said, some athletes will be housed at the Olympic center dorms; others likely will be guests of host families in the community. He said several NMU professors and staff members have offered to serve as interpreters.

Crane, who qualified for the U.S. Olympic boxing trials Aug. 20-26 in Houston, said he knows Marquette will unfurl its welcome mat for its guests.

"I hope we can show them as good a time as they showed us," he said.

[Chris Ⓐ LeRoux]

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USOEC set to take on China in Marquette
By Michael Babcock

The United States Olympic Education Center in Marquette Michigan is hosting China versus USOEC on Saturday Oct. 23rd. The event is a huge event for the USOEC and United States Olympics in general. Four China Olympic teams have made the trip to the United States, and all of them will compete head-to-head against United States competitors.

Women’s freestyle wrestling, men’s Greco-Roman wrestling, Weightlifting and boxing will be the four sports contested by the two teams, and all matches will be played at the Barry Events Center.

At 7 p.m. on Saturday, the event will take place with all of the groups competing against the players they have been practicing with since October 14th.

Yang Xia, the vice director of Hunan Weightlifting Sports Administration Center was the gold medal champion in 2000 at the Sydney Olympics for weightlifting in the 56k grouping. She has dedicated her entire life to the cause, including two years of her life where she dropped all other responsibility and weightlifted.

This event will be the last one for the resident boxers in Marquette as the program is closing in December. The programs in Marquette serve as the training center for Olympic athletes across the nation.

For more information on the event call the Barry Event Center box office.