Highest-paid volleybelle leads China in Asiad

BEIJING – A towering volleyball player who makes her living in Turkey is the unrivalled star of China’s squad at the Asian Games in Indonesia.

Zhu Ting is something of an anomaly in China’s sporting world, which still largely relies on its highly disciplined and deeply nationalistic sports academies to produce champions who dominate at events such as the Asiad.

Her professional success demonstrates how its athletes are looking for new avenues to develop their talents, and sports administrators are hoping that will spark a resurgence in the country’s fortunes after China placed third in the medal standings at the Rio 2016 Summer Olympics.

Despite her already considerable achievements, the 23-year-old Zhu doesn’t mask her thirst for greater glory.

“Champion, MVP, best attacker, I’ve nabbed them all. But still, champion (is my goal),’’ she said in a recent interview with Hong Kong media. “No one can get too much.’’

Zhu was the backbone of the women’s volleyball team that won gold at Rio, earning her the MVP award.

That was followed by a move to Vakifbank Istanbul, where she won the Turkish league title last year and was paid a reported salary of more than $1.5 million – making her the world’s highest-paid volleyball player, male or female. Unconfirmed reports say Russian club team Dinamo Kazan is prepared to increase that offer for the coming season.

Standing 1.98 meters (6-feet-6), Zhu is the middle of five girls of a family from central China’s rural Henan province. She entered the junior national team at 16 and won her first MVP award at the Asian Juniors in 2012.

The next year she was promoted to the senior squad by legendary coach Jenny “Iron Hammer’’ Lang Ping, who is again leading China’s squad and continues to sing Zhu’s praises.