OLYMPIC diving gold medalist Tian Liang has decided to retire from all competitions, the sports authority of North China’s Shaanxi Province said Monday.

Li Minghua, head of the Shaanxi Sports Administration, said that Tian’s request to retire had been approved.

Tian, dubbed China’s “diving prince,” will act as vice director of Shaanxi’s Swimming Administrative Center and attend Qinghua University where he will complete his masters’ degree.

Tian, born Aug. 27, 1979, was the 10m platform champion at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Four years later at the Athens Games, he won the bronze medal in the 10m platform event and a gold medal in the synchronized platform event.

The men’s 10m platform event was the only gold medal China missed in the ongoing world championships in Melbourne. China won the other nine diving golds.

Tian was kicked off the national diving team after the Athens Games in 2004 for spending too much time on commercial activities and refusing to train.

Earlier this month, a group of Chongqing lawmakers called on the National People’s Congress to recall Tian to the national team for the 2008 Beijing Games.

The proposal to the parliamentary session filed by a lawyer and 20 lawmakers from Chongqing, Tian’s home city in Sichuan

Province, said the 28-year-old was too good to be left out of the team.

“The country has spent a big sum of money developing Olympic champions like Tian. No one has the authority to drop a good athlete,” said the proposal.

Reports said Tian refused to apologize for trying to cash in on his fame with lucrative commercial contracts that upset the nation’s sports administration.

“The national team squad is open to all good athletes,” China’s national diving team manage Zhou Jihong was quoted as saying after the proposal was reported by many Chinese newspapers.

Zhou said Tian — who had not trained for months — needed to win back his place by performing well at a series of national trials and national championships before the Olympics.

“Winning a chance to compete at international competitions including the Olympics is not a result of popularity or reputation. It is about ability,” said Li Hua, director of the Swimming Administrative Center.

Tian’s fate seemed sealed March 12 when Liu Peng, chief of China’s sports administration, said that he supported the national diving team’s decision to drop Tian. Liu stressed that his administration had always been fair to all sports people.(SD News)

OLYMPIC diving gold medalist Tian Liang has decided to retire from all competitions, the sports authority of North China’s Shaanxi Province said Monday.

Li Minghua, head of the Shaanxi Sports Administration, said that Tian’s request to retire had been approved.

Tian, dubbed China’s “diving prince,” will act as vice director of Shaanxi’s Swimming Administrative Center and attend Qinghua University where he will complete his masters’ degree.

Tian, born Aug. 27, 1979, was the 10m platform champion at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Four years later at the Athens Games, he won the bronze medal in the 10m platform event and a gold medal in the synchronized platform event.

The men’s 10m platform event was the only gold medal China missed in the ongoing world championships in Melbourne. China won the other nine diving golds.

Tian was kicked off the national diving team after the Athens Games in 2004 for spending too much time on commercial activities and refusing to train.

Earlier this month, a group of Chongqing lawmakers called on the National People’s Congress to recall Tian to the national team for the 2008 Beijing Games.

The proposal to the parliamentary session filed by a lawyer and 20 lawmakers from Chongqing, Tian’s home city in Sichuan

Province, said the 28-year-old was too good to be left out of the team.

“The country has spent a big sum of money developing Olympic champions like Tian. No one has the authority to drop a good athlete,” said the proposal.

Reports said Tian refused to apologize for trying to cash in on his fame with lucrative commercial contracts that upset the nation’s sports administration.

“The national team squad is open to all good athletes,” China’s national diving team manage Zhou Jihong was quoted as saying after the proposal was reported by many Chinese newspapers.

Zhou said Tian — who had not trained for months — needed to win back his place by performing well at a series of national trials and national championships before the Olympics.

“Winning a chance to compete at international competitions including the Olympics is not a result of popularity or reputation. It is about ability,” said Li Hua, director of the Swimming Administrative Center.

Tian’s fate seemed sealed March 12 when Liu Peng, chief of China’s sports administration, said that he supported the national diving team’s decision to drop Tian. Liu stressed that his administration had always been fair to all sports people.(SD News)