MEXICO: SWIMMING - China gives Mexico a helping hand in training its athletes for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing

From the boardroom to the swimming pool, the growing influence of China is being felt across the globe - including Latin America. Here in Mexico, Chinese trainers put Mexican athletes through their paces - preparing them for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. Ma Jin - the coach for Mexico's national diving team - arrived in Mexico in 2003 in an exchange programme with China. Now some 32 Chinese trainers are preparing Mexican athletes across a range of disciplines for the Games which are less than two years away. Instilling a rigid discipline, Ma has succeeded in shaping two young diving talents in the shape of Paola Espinoza and Rommel Pachecho - bringing them unprecedented success in recent competitions. Ma Jin has taken on more divers following early successes - training Tatiana Ortiz who won a gold medal in the 2006 Centro American games and Omar Ojeda who won a silver medal in the Madrid Grand Prix. In the 2006 Ma brought in another Chinese trainer Bai Jian Ping as her assistant. Now, all eyes are on the Beijing Olympics to see if China's sporting prowess is as much an exportable commodity as its consumer products which are flooding world markets. Ma said adjusting to life in Mexico had been a challenge in the beginning. "Until now I am able to communicate with the others. At first I wasn't accustomed to the language, the food, the Mexican way of living, or communicating with the Mexicans. It was hard for me to live here. But everything is better now," said Ma. For the Mexican divers like Paola Espinoza, it was also something of a cultural leap to adapt to a much more rigid training regimen. "The customs and training methods are totally different from the ones we have in Mexico. In China they are more used to not laughing, not talking during training, too much respect for the trainer, which in Mexico is not seen, it's a little bit more like a game," said Espinoza during a recent break in training. China's Sports Minister Liu Peng visited Mexico in June to cement growing sporting exchanges between the two countries. For Ma, having Mexican athletes take on his home country in his native city in 2008, presents no conflict of interest - he just wants his athletes to do him proud. "I hope we can improve the level of the divers with our exercises. Now we all are preparing for the 2008 Olympic Games. I am from Beijing . I am very glad to return to Beijing with the members of the Mexican team. I hope we can obtain good results in my native city," said Ma. The Mexican athletes say having a Chinese trainer has given them hope of doing even better in 2008. In Athens 2004, Mexico's medal tally was just four - three silvers and a bronze. And in the diving pool, China had virtually a clean sweep of golds. "China is the power in diving, if they are here we can improve upon our mistakes and we can reach Bejing 2008, the Olympic games, with a more open mind about what is China, and the way we should do our stuff," said Mexican diver Rommel Pacheco. Ma said that despite the hardships of being thousands of miles from home, honing the skills of Mexican athletes has been worth it. "I missed a lot my family, my friends, the partners I worked before, and the leaders, during this time working in a foreign country. Thanks for everything, for the care and attention to my family and the support of the leaders. I want to tell you thanks a lot."

ITN Source | October 28, 2006

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