Reebok signs up China's Yao Ming

Reebok signs up China's Yao Ming

BOSTON, Massachusetts: Houston Rockets' Yao Ming has signed a
sponsorship deal with Reebok, the sports shoe giant announced
Friday.

Yao took the NBA by storm last season and Reebok is keen to
tap in to his huge popularity and the marketing opportunities it
could open up in Asia.

Reebok president Paul Fireman said: "Close to 200 million
people are playing basketball in China and he's a hero to 200
million more people in nations that made up the Asian Basketball
Confederation.

"We now have several extraordinarily powerful assets in global
performance basketball. And the addition of Yao gives us
incredible traction in China, a critical market with great
potential for our brand." Yao was sponsored by Nike in his first
NBA season. --AFP