The Olympic Games are a global sporting event. More than 100 years ago, many Chinese patriots, including Chengting Thomas Wang, known as "the father of the Olympics in China", were active in promoting sports and combatting the discrimination of foreigners who regarded China as "the sick man of East Asia".
Chengting Thomas Wang was born in 1882, as the son of an Anglican priest, Wang Youguang. When he was young, he studied at Trinity College in Ningbo, which was run by the Anglican Church. At the age of 11, Wang entered a Sino-British School in Shanghai. In 1905, he traveled east to Japan. Under the influence of Sun Yat-sen and other revolutionaries, he joined the Tong Meng Hui (Chinese Revolutionary League). At this time the YMCA (Young Men's Christian Association) was introduced to Japan, so Wang became a founding member and served as the director-general. In 1907, he went to the University of Michigan and Yale University where he became one of the few scholars proficient in International Law at that time.
After the Revolution of 1911, Thomas Wang returned to China and served as foreign minister of the Nanjing National Government, ambassador to the United States, and President of the Red Cross Society of China.
In 1919, he attended the Versailles Peace Conference as the representative of the military government of Guangdong. In the face of Japanese aggression, he fought with Gu Weijun and others, and was an active participant in the May 4th Patriotic Movement, and refused to sign the peace treaty. It is worth mentioning that in conversations focused on the revision of the peace treaty, Wang and other Chinese diplomats were able to recover foreign concessions in Tianjin, Zhenjiang, Xiamen, and Weihai from Britain, Belgium, and other countries. This was a major victory in China's modern diplomatic history.
Wang's diplomatic career was tainted because he carried out the National Government's policy of compromise in negotiations with Japan, so he became increasingly marginalized in the diplomatic world and turned to the world of sports. Wang took an active part in the work of the YMCA. He loved and promoted sports. He returned to China to become the director-general of the National Association of the Chinese YMCA. In 1912, Zhang Boling and Shen Siliang founded the China National Amateur Athletic Federation in Beijing, which aimed at promoting modern competitive sports. Wang served as the director for a long time. In 1922, he was elected as the first Chinese member of the International Olympic Committee. He was a life-long member of the committee and also served as President and chief referee of the 8th Far East Sports Committee.
Wang emphasized that "sports can save the country", believing that sports can strengthen the body, save the country and build national unity. In the foreword to the periodical Sports Quarterly, published by the China National Amateur Athletic Federation in 1935, he wrote, “We should regard sports as an essential way to strengthen the body and mind, and as putting us on the right track to rejuvenate the nation. To revitalize and save the country is not the responsibility of one person. A focus on materialism in the world has contributed to the decline in concern for physical the human body. In the long run, the future of our nation is a cause for concern. Advocating sports and holding sports meets are the best ways to solve this problem.”
In 1932, the joint efforts of Wang and Zhang Boling, and others contributed to the participation of Liu Changchun, the first Chinese athlete to take part in the Olympic Games. Although he didn’t do well at the 10th Games, held in Los Angeles, Liu is remembered for being the first Chinese athlete to participate in the Olympics.
In 1936, Wang led a 141-member team to the 11th Olympic Games in Berlin. They sailed from Shanghai to Italy, then took trains and arrived in Berlin on July 22. Many athletes were not able to exercise on the boat, and some became ill because of seasickness. After arriving in Berlin, they only rested for a few days before competing. As a result, athletes in track and field, swimming, basketball, and other competitions were eliminated in the preliminary rounds. However, the martial arts participants left a strong impression on the audience.
In the 1948 London Olympic Games, Wang led the team but because of insufficient funds and difficult conditions, the Chinese athletes did not fare well. When the Chinese Olympic delegation was about to return home, there were not enough funds to cover the travel expenses. Their request for financial assistance was met with the following reply: "The Government cannot provide additional budget and the delegation will need to take care of their own expenses." He had to use his influence to raise money so that the delegation could return home.
Wang moved to Hong Kong during the 1950s and passed away in 1961.
- Translated by Nicolas Cao
奥林匹克运动会，是全球体育盛世。而在一百多年前，中国不少仁人志士，为了摆脱外国人对于“东亚病夫”的歧视，积极投入到了体育救国的运动中，其中就包括被誉为“中国奥林匹克之父”的王正廷。
王正廷生于1882年，其父为圣公会牧师王有光。年少时，在英国圣公会所办的宁波三一书院读书，11岁进入上海中英学校求学。1905年，他东渡日本，受到孙中山等革命志士影响，因而加入同盟会。此外，基督教青年会的运动在此时传入日本，王正廷于是在留日学生中，创立了青年会组织，并担任总干事。1907年，王正廷赴美国密歇根大学及耶鲁大学攻读法律，成为当时少有的精通国际法的学者。
辛亥革命后，王正廷回到祖国，担任过南京国民政府外交部长、驻美国大使以及中国红十字会会长。
1919年，王正廷作为广东护法军政府的代表，出席巴黎和会。面对日本咄咄逼人的态度，他与顾维钧等人一起战斗，积极响应国内爆发的五四爱国运动，拒绝在和约上签字。值得一提的是，在与列强的“改订新约运动”，王等中国外交官从英国、比利时等国手中，收回了天津、镇江、厦门以及威海等租界，这是中国近代外交史上一次重大胜利。
尽管由于在对日谈判上，执行了国民政府的妥协政策，让王正廷的外交生涯出现了污点，这让他在外交界日益边缘化，而活跃于体育事业当中。王正廷积极参与基督教青年会的工作，尤其热爱体育事业。他回国就任中华基督教青年会全国协会总干事。1912年与张伯苓及沈嗣良等在北京创建中华全国体育协进会，推动近代竞技体育项目为宗旨，长期任理事长。1922年被选为国际奥委会委员，成为中国第一位国际奥委会委员，并当选为终身委员。此外他还担任过第八届远东运动委员会会长兼总裁判。
王正廷强调“体育救国”，认为体育可以强身，可以救国，能够唤起国民的团结意识。他在中华全国体育协进会1935年创办的《体育季刊》“发刊词”中说：“当视体育为强健身心之常经，当视体育为振兴民族之正轨。因为“兴邦与救国绝非一人所能负其责，而世界之物质文明，导致人类身体有逐渐衰落之趋势，长此以往，民族之前途何堪设想，为提倡体育，举行运动会为最佳良方。”
1932年，王正廷与张伯苓等人的共同努力，促成了中国第一个运动员刘长春参加第十届洛杉矶奥运会，虽然没有获得好成绩，但这是中国人第一次出现在奥运赛场上。
1936年，王正廷率领队参加第十一届柏林奥运会，全团共141位成员。他们从上海坐船远涉重洋到达意大利，再转火车，于7月22日抵达柏林。许多运动员在船上没能得到很好锻炼，加上一些人晕船导致身体不适，且到柏林后只休息数天就上场比赛，因而田径、游泳、篮球等选手在预赛时即遭淘汰。不过，武术表演却给观众留下深刻印象。
1948年伦敦奥运会，王正廷在资金预算不足的情况下，仍带队出征，由于条件艰难，伦敦奥运会上，中国选手未取得好名次。最后代表团回程的时候旅费不够，向国内求援得到的回复是：“政府不能追加预算，请代表团自行解决。” 王正廷只好利用自己的影响，募捐筹款，才得以让代表团回国。
50年代后，王正廷移居香港，并于1961年安息主怀。
奥林匹克之父王正廷
The Olympic Games are a global sporting event. More than 100 years ago, many Chinese patriots, including Chengting Thomas Wang, known as "the father of the Olympics in China", were active in promoting sports and combatting the discrimination of foreigners who regarded China as "the sick man of East Asia".
Chengting Thomas Wang was born in 1882, as the son of an Anglican priest, Wang Youguang. When he was young, he studied at Trinity College in Ningbo, which was run by the Anglican Church. At the age of 11, Wang entered a Sino-British School in Shanghai. In 1905, he traveled east to Japan. Under the influence of Sun Yat-sen and other revolutionaries, he joined the Tong Meng Hui (Chinese Revolutionary League). At this time the YMCA (Young Men's Christian Association) was introduced to Japan, so Wang became a founding member and served as the director-general. In 1907, he went to the University of Michigan and Yale University where he became one of the few scholars proficient in International Law at that time.
After the Revolution of 1911, Thomas Wang returned to China and served as foreign minister of the Nanjing National Government, ambassador to the United States, and President of the Red Cross Society of China.
In 1919, he attended the Versailles Peace Conference as the representative of the military government of Guangdong. In the face of Japanese aggression, he fought with Gu Weijun and others, and was an active participant in the May 4th Patriotic Movement, and refused to sign the peace treaty. It is worth mentioning that in conversations focused on the revision of the peace treaty, Wang and other Chinese diplomats were able to recover foreign concessions in Tianjin, Zhenjiang, Xiamen, and Weihai from Britain, Belgium, and other countries. This was a major victory in China's modern diplomatic history.
Wang's diplomatic career was tainted because he carried out the National Government's policy of compromise in negotiations with Japan, so he became increasingly marginalized in the diplomatic world and turned to the world of sports. Wang took an active part in the work of the YMCA. He loved and promoted sports. He returned to China to become the director-general of the National Association of the Chinese YMCA. In 1912, Zhang Boling and Shen Siliang founded the China National Amateur Athletic Federation in Beijing, which aimed at promoting modern competitive sports. Wang served as the director for a long time. In 1922, he was elected as the first Chinese member of the International Olympic Committee. He was a life-long member of the committee and also served as President and chief referee of the 8th Far East Sports Committee.
Wang emphasized that "sports can save the country", believing that sports can strengthen the body, save the country and build national unity. In the foreword to the periodical Sports Quarterly, published by the China National Amateur Athletic Federation in 1935, he wrote, “We should regard sports as an essential way to strengthen the body and mind, and as putting us on the right track to rejuvenate the nation. To revitalize and save the country is not the responsibility of one person. A focus on materialism in the world has contributed to the decline in concern for physical the human body. In the long run, the future of our nation is a cause for concern. Advocating sports and holding sports meets are the best ways to solve this problem.”
In 1932, the joint efforts of Wang and Zhang Boling, and others contributed to the participation of Liu Changchun, the first Chinese athlete to take part in the Olympic Games. Although he didn’t do well at the 10th Games, held in Los Angeles, Liu is remembered for being the first Chinese athlete to participate in the Olympics.
In 1936, Wang led a 141-member team to the 11th Olympic Games in Berlin. They sailed from Shanghai to Italy, then took trains and arrived in Berlin on July 22. Many athletes were not able to exercise on the boat, and some became ill because of seasickness. After arriving in Berlin, they only rested for a few days before competing. As a result, athletes in track and field, swimming, basketball, and other competitions were eliminated in the preliminary rounds. However, the martial arts participants left a strong impression on the audience.
In the 1948 London Olympic Games, Wang led the team but because of insufficient funds and difficult conditions, the Chinese athletes did not fare well. When the Chinese Olympic delegation was about to return home, there were not enough funds to cover the travel expenses. Their request for financial assistance was met with the following reply: "The Government cannot provide additional budget and the delegation will need to take care of their own expenses." He had to use his influence to raise money so that the delegation could return home.
Wang moved to Hong Kong during the 1950s and passed away in 1961.
- Translated by Nicolas Cao
Chengting Thomas Wang, Father of the Olympic Games in China
