Fang Fengdi

Fang Fengdi, a former Chinese women’s basketball player and once captain of the China women’s basketball team, began her career in 1964 when she was selected by a coach at Shanghai’s Jing’an District Primary School for Young Athletes. She joined Jing’an District’s Young Athlete School and later moved to Shanghai’s youth team. In 1969, Shanghai resumed professional athlete training, and Fang Fengdi became a main center for the Shanghai women’s basketball team. When the Chinese women’s national team was restored in 1970, Fang was transferred to Beijing, first joining the national youth team and, two years later, being promoted to the national team. In 1973, China regained a slot at the Asian Games, and in 1974 she earned the right to participate in the Asian Games for the first time. At the 1974 Asian Games, Fang, as captain, led the team to a bronze medal, with victories over Iran and North Korea and defeats to Japan and South Korea. In June 1976, Fang, as captain, went to Japan for training to prepare for the Asian Championship, and later, in the four-month Hong Kong Asian Championship, the Chinese women’s basketball team defeated Japan to win the title. She retired in 1979 and was assigned to work at the Shanghai Institute of Physical Science (Sports Science).

In the 1980s, Fang Fengdi earned a monthly salary of more than 40 yuan at the institute. Her son Yao Ming was born on September 12, 1980. At age nine, Yao Ming first came into contact with basketball at the Xuhui District Young Athletes School. In 1991, Fang Fengdi took him to meet a senior basketball expert at the State Sports Commission; the expert believed Yao’s height was outstanding, but initially he did not yet possess basketball talent. At 14, standing over two meters tall, Fang agreed to let him join the Shanghai Youth Team, beginning to guide him into basketball. By 16, Yao Ming was a key player on the Shanghai Youth Team, and at 17 he joined the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). In 2002, Yao Ming was selected first overall in the NBA Draft by the Houston Rockets; Fang Fengdi accompanied his parents to the United States to watch the live broadcast and lived in the United States. She took care of daily life and family affairs during Yao Ming’s career and participated in asset management, continuing to be involved with the Yao Foundation and other affairs after his retirement.

In 2005, Fang Fengdi, with her husband Yao Zhi Yuan and a friend, opened Yao Restaurant on Westheimer Street in Houston, investing over $1.5 million. The restaurant focuses on Shanghai and Sichuan cuisines; the “Yao” in the restaurant’s name refers to Yao Zhi Yuan, not Yao Ming. In 2014, Fang Fengdi and Yao Zhi Yuan participated in the Yao Foundation Hope Primary School Basketball Season in Jinzhai County, serving as interim coaches. In 2022, Fang Fengdi was awarded the Medal Commemorating 50 Years of Party Membership; in 2013 she received the Special Contribution Award for US–China Friendship.