NBA star center Yao Ming of China, the tallest athlete in Athens at 2.26 meters (7-6), offers the easiest access for the media against the nagging concerns of foreign reporters in their basketball beat during the Olympic Games.

"Yao asked me to find a speaker for him in order to let everyone hear his words during the media time," said Xinhua basketball correspondent Wang Jingyu on Tuesday.

With three days to go before the opening of the Games, dozens of non-Chinese reporters have opted to contact Xinhua, instead of Yao himself, for their "green passes" to the star center of Houston Rockets.

Among them is Yamanaka Toshihiro, a reporter for Asahi Shimbun of Japan, who was hoping for an interview with the Chinese phenomenal star.

While the majority of Chinese athletes used to shy away from the media, especially foreign press, they become more cooperative these days after a string of Chinese elites start to play in overseas leagues.

Yao has never turned down interview requests when he plays for the Rockets and for the Chinese national team. Instead, he is tagged as one of the most easy-going players in China.

The giant center spoke to dozens of NBA reporters daily in his first year for the Rockets during the 2002-03 season, and now, he is ready to face more media in Athens.

The men's basketball competition will start on August 15 when China meets Spain in a Group A opener at the Helliniko Indoor Arena.

(Xinhua News Agency August 11, 2004)