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April 7, 2017

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Home » Supplement » Formula one

Delivering high-octane action every race day

FORMULA One is one sport made for television, and local followers will immediately recognize one name — Li Bing, the voice of motorsports in Shanghai for over a decade.

Shanghai Television’s channel, STV Sports, first broadcasted F1 races in 1996. But it was not until 2004 — the year when Shanghai first hosted the F1 Chinese Grand Prix — that the channel went big on the sport. Li has held fort since then.

“My responsibility has always been to get more fans involved, to create my own understanding of the competition and share my interpretation of the sport with the audience,” Li said ahead of the 2017 Chinese GP this weekend.

Li, who majored in Chinese language and literature in college, started working for STV as a documentary producer. He moved to the station’s sports channel in 1994, first as a news anchor and then as a commentator.

“I always liked motor racing. However, there was no easy access to races or related news programs in the early 1990s because cars were still a distant dream for many people,” Li said.

“One of Shanghai’s news channels had a sports program, which would spare five minutes every week for F1 news. I made it a point to follow them regularly. That was the era of drivers like (Ayrton) Senna, (Alain) Prost, (Nigel) Mansell.”

Li first watched live races on ESPN Starsports in the late 1990s when legendary Hong Kong-based commentator Robin Kung held sway over Chinese motor racing fans. After being told that he would be commentating for STV in 1996, Li headed to Guangdong TV Station which had the copyrights of the races. “I spent three days in Guangdong TV’s sports department watching the videos — almost 20 of them. Basically, I learned everything about motor sports from Robin before I delved into it myself,” Li said.

“Then I spent a month collecting all kinds of data to prepare for the race. Remember, in 1996, collecting information was not that easy because of limited Internet access.”

In 2004, when the Chinese Grand Prix made its debut in Shanghai, STV invited ESPN’s Singapore-based F1 broadcasting team to Shanghai. Li joined them in the commentary box — watching, learning and listening — to kick start a career that has since seen him reign as the undisputed face of motor sports in China.

One of the downsides of being an F1 commentator, however, was that you rarely make it to the circuits. Li watched and commentated from the TV station’s broadcasting room, even for the Chinese Grand Prix. Over the past 13 years, Li said he only missed one or two races due to personal schedule.

Li shared his views about the sport and the changes brought in this year by the F1 management during an exclusive chat with Shanghai Daily.

Q: Are you also of the opinion that Formula One’s popularity has been on a decline?

A: I agree that F1 has been losing audience worldwide over the past few years, especially since Red Bull dominated the races in the early 2000s. The competition was not as exciting as they were before. Also, the decline of traditional powerhouses like Ferrari and McLaren also seemed to have an impact. Especially Ferrari, which had a huge following in China and worldwide. When some manufacturers encountered technical barriers, the F1’s regulatory bodies came up with some unreasonable rules, including last year’s new qualifying rule which proved to be a failure. But I’m looking forward to this year’s races. The first grand prix in Australia proved that the new changes in rules were having an effect. The gap between Mercedes and Ferrari has been narrowed and the races will not be boring anymore.

Q: Do you have a personal style when commentating on the races?

A: Until now, I never thought about creating a style for myself, whether it’s for F1, tennis, boxing or any other sports. I only consider whether my views or interpretation of the races are accepted by the viewers, and if they feel comfortable about it.

My effort has always been to ensure the enthusiasm and interest of my audience doesn’t wane. To do that, I have to keep myself at a high spirit and try to be passionate even when the race or the match is dull, because that’s my job.

Q: Have you ever been challenged by your viewers?

A: Compared to other sports, F1 is more complicated and requires lots of professional knowledge. I, and my partner Pan Yongyong, have been questioned by television viewers in the first few years. They would collect our mistakes and post them onto the online forums. But that was how I discovered another commentating partner — Wei Xin, a motor sports fan who was very active in online forums. I liked and agreed with some of his opinions, and invited him to join us during live broadcasts.

Q: What’s the most important quality of a sports commentator?

A: I don’t think there is any standard quality. Some commentators are relatively introverted, but are usually knowledgeable and rational. Other commentators appear to be passionate and outgoing, who are easily excited and therefore influence their audiences. It’s hard to say which style is better. From my point of view, the most important requirement for a commentator is a rich source of knowledge and background.

When you sit in front of the microphone, you have to tell the audience more than what they can see. To achieve that, you need to have your own interpretation of the sport or competition. Personally, I spend much effort in understanding and analyzing team strategies and share them with my audience. Sometimes, it’s more than competitions, maybe just about understanding human beings and the way they think.

Q: Do you think Bernie Ecclestone’s departure will change F1?

A: Given the emphasis on green energy, I think the sport’s future itself is in doubt whether Bernie retires or not. Can you imagine what motor racing will be like if all cars in Europe start using electricity one day? If there is a breakthrough in battery technology in the near future, I do think the sport’s future will be in a crisis.

Q: Shanghai has now hosted F1 for 13 years. Has it helped in promoting motorsports in Shanghai and China?

A: China’s car culture is not well developed despite the increase in the number of car users. We are still in the beginning stage when it comes to race tracks and people’s emotional connection to cars. In some European countries, or our neighbor Japan, the growth of car culture took almost 40 to 50 years, or even 100 years. You can’t rush and push through the development of a culture. It is a steady process.

Therefore I can understand why F1 encountered problems while promoting the sport in countries like China. But the good part about Shanghai is that it is an international city, and the knowledge level of its audience is different. F1 requires intelligent audience, otherwise you won’t be able to enjoy the sport.

Q: Have you thought about quitting television for other new platforms which have been luring talents from traditional media?

A: I won’t mind, but nobody has invited me yet (laughs). I have already started commentating Formula E races for an online sports outlet. Formula E uses electric cars and the tracks are usually located at city center. It’s always fun to study about new things.

Q: Which is your favorite team and driver?

A: My favorite team is McLaren, since the time of Senna and Prost. McLaren made (Lewis) Hamilton and (Fernando) Alonso teammates later. Both drivers have strong characters, which was a lot of fun for the fans. My favorite driver has to be Michael Schumacher. However, his current situation has changed my views toward life. Personally, I find it hard to accept it.




 

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