Culture Notes: Person Intro: 姚明 Yáo míng and 成龙 Chéng lóng

Yao Ming, born in Shanghai on September 12nd, 1980, is a retired Chinese professional basketball player who last played for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Both of Yao Ming’s parents were former professional basketball players in China, so he began to play basketball when he was a child. When he was in grade 5, he was already 1.8 meters tall. In 1998, when he was 18 years old, he joined the National basketball Team. In 2000, he became a member of the Asian Basketball Star Team. In 2002, he joined the NBA. Using his height and weight, Yao can control the space around him easily. Yao continues to give back to his homeland. Yao’s charitable organization raises money to help victims of the recent earthquake in Sichuan Province. He also purchased his former team, the Shanghai Sharks, in July of 2009, in order to save them from bankruptcy.

Cheng Long, also known as Jackie Chan, born in Hong Kong on April 7th, 1954, is a popular international kung fu movie star. His acrobatic fighting style leaves a deep impression on people’s minds. He is dedicated to his work. He is one of the few movie stars who does movie stunts personally. Besides being a movie star, he also sings songs. He has released a few albums and has sung many theme songs for movies. In 1988, he established the Jackie Chan charitable foundation, offering scholarships and active help to people. Another charitable foundation, the Dragon’s Heart Foundation was founded in 2005 and aims to help children and elderly people in remote areas in China. He has build a lot of schools, and continues to provide books, clothes, fees and other things for the children. He wants to give more educational opportunities to the children in poor regions.

Yao Ming is a basketball player.
姚明是篮球运动员。
Yáo míng shì lánqiú yùndòngyuán.

Chen Long （Jackie Chan） is a movie star.
成龙是电影明星。
Chéng lóng shì diànyǐng míngxīng.