Why did the world's only Samaranch Memorial Hall settle in Tianjin? Memorial Hall | Samaranch | Tianjin

Tianjin plays a crucial role in the development of modern sports in China. On the other hand, I am also the "Tianjin uncle" and have a deep affection for this city. The museum has received strong support from various sectors in Tianjin from its location selection to construction.

On July 31, 2023, when Samaranch III, Matteo Samaranch Pihoyi, boarded a plane returning from China, he once again turned his gaze towards the direction of Tianjin, the coast of the Bohai Sea. There is the only Samaranch Memorial Hall in the world authorized by the Samaranch family and approved by the International Olympic Committee. It is one of the more than 16000 precious collectibles collected by Saon during his lifetime. During his visit to Tianjin, "Xiao Xiao Sa" said that this place was like his second home, and every time he approached, it made him feel very friendly.

On April 21, 2013, the Samaranch Memorial Hall officially opened to the public. Ten years later, the grandson of Juan Antonio Samaranch, the lifetime honorary president of the International Olympic Committee, still referred to it as a "link for sports and cultural exchange.". This year marks the 10th anniversary of the establishment of the Memorial Hall. Former Executive Member of the International Olympic Committee and Founder and Director of the Samaranch Memorial Hall, Wu Jingguo, recently accepted an interview with China News Agency's "East West Question" to explain the inheritance of the Olympic spirit in China and interpret the past and present lives of this museum, which showcases the legendary memory of Saon's life to the world.

The summary of the interview transcript is as follows:

China News Agency Wu Jingguo: I met Samaranch during the 1980 Moscow Olympics. We both study non sports majors, but we both love sports and collectibles, and have a special fondness for boxing, which makes us feel like old friends at first sight.

Samaranch visited China 29 times in his lifetime, which not only led to the passage of the Nagoya Resolution in 1979, but also restored the legitimate seat of New China in the International Olympic Committee. On July 13, 2001, he personally announced that the 2008 Summer Olympics would be held in Beijing.

In 1981, he once told He Zhenliang, who was elected as a member of the International Olympic Committee, "The cooperation between the International Olympic Committee and the Chinese Olympic Committee will make the Olympics stronger because of China.". After the Beijing Olympics, he wrote in an article titled "Why Do I Love China and Respect China?": The Chinese people are a nation with super strong memory. They know how to cherish friends in times of adversity and will not forget those who stood by them during times of adversity. At the Beijing Olympics, I gained love and friendship from China, and also learned to love and respect the Chinese people. The Olympic movement of the 21st century cannot be without China, and the Olympic family cannot be without the 1.3 billion Chinese people, because this will make us even stronger.

Samaranch has loved China throughout his life, and my family has had close ties with the Samaranch family. I am responsible for building the Samaranch Memorial Museum in China, as I entrusted my lifelong collection to me due to my trust.

According to "A General History of Chinese Sports" by Wu Jingguo from China News Agency, on October 24, 1907, at the award ceremony of the 5th School Sports Games in Tianjin, the famous educator and sportsman Zhang Boling from Tianjin proposed: "The success of this sports event has filled me with hope for our athletes to participate in the Olympic Games in the near future." He was the first person in Chinese history to propose to participate in the Olympics, and subsequently, the deafening "Olympic Three Questions" were born in Tianjin.

The first member of the International Olympic Committee in China, Wang Zhengting, graduated from Beiyang University in Tianjin. Chinese basketball originated in Tianjin. In 1895, Chinese people saw basketball games for the first time in Tianjin. Dong Shouyi, the father of basketball in New China, trained the famous "Nankai Five Tigers" during his tenure as the coach of the Nankai School basketball team, making Tianjin basketball renowned overseas.

In 1924, Li Airui, who won the gold medal in the men's 400m at the Paris Olympics, was born in Tianjin and served as a teacher at Tianjin Xinxue Academy. In the same year, Zhang Boling was appointed as the honorary president of the All China Sports Association. At subsequent meetings, he proposed to bid for the 15th Olympic Games and predicted that the day of the Olympics would be the time for China to take off.

Since the introduction of English football and horse racing to Tianjin in the 1860s, modern sports have continuously taken root and flourished in China through Tianjin. Tianjin plays a crucial role in the development of modern sports in China. On the other hand, I am also the "Tianjin uncle" and have a deep affection for this city. The museum has received strong support from various sectors in Tianjin from its location selection to construction.

China News Agency Wu Jingguo: I have been actively promoting sports exchanges between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait, and many of my views on the Olympics coincide with Samaranch.

In February 1988, Samaranch had an in-depth discussion with me and He Zhenliang on cross-strait sports exchanges. In 1989, I brought a youth gymnastics delegation from Taiwan to Beijing to participate in the Asian Youth Gymnastics Championships.

On the evening of July 13, 2001, He Zhenliang and I were at the 112th Plenary Session of the International Olympic Committee at the World Trade Center in Moscow. When we heard that Beijing had won the hosting rights for the 2008 Olympics, we hugged each other and wept with joy. At that time, we had a feeling of having achieved our wish.

In 2008, I accompanied Samaranch to watch boxing matches at the Beijing Olympics. In 2009, the boxing world championship was held in Milan, and I once again accompanied Samaranch to watch the game. During the competition, he invited me to his office in Barcelona, Spain as a guest and opened the collection cabinet in the basement, saying to me, "One day, I left, and these collectibles are all for you." At that time, he did not require me to build a museum, but I felt the heavy responsibility of being entrusted by my lifelong friend.

In April 2010, Samaranch passed away in Barcelona.I led the team to take photos and register these collections, and then shipped them back to China by sea in 361 cardboard boxes, which took about two months.

China News Agency Wu Jingguo: The Olympics have a beginning and an end, but museums never end. The Olympic Museum is a never-ending Olympic Games.

The Samaranch Memorial Hall records his life and all his achievements. I don't want this place to just reflect the lives and deeds of celebrities. As characters pass away, their stories should not end, but should continue vividly. The story won't change, but it can influence the future life of visitors, that's my belief.

So, in the design of the memorial hall, we have a "Five Rings Plan", which is to continue the layout of the Olympic Five Rings. Looking down at the venue from the air, it presents an "8" shape, symbolizing the stunning 2008 Olympics. The S shape represents the first letter of Samaranch's name. And this is also a symbol of infinite cycles, symbolizing infinity and the story that continues after Samaranch's death.

We have placed the other "three rings" underground to form supporting areas and support the visiting passages inside the museum. The "Three Rings" are hidden inside, invisible to the naked eye, but can be perceived by visitors at all times. When the audience strolls inside the museum, they can enjoy circulating in the dimension of freedom.

The "∞" shaped venue is completely barrier free with no stairs, making it convenient for various groups of people to observe. Walking within it, one can naturally return to the starting place, which is very convenient.

In terms of energy utilization, the fresh air system inside the museum can allow visitors to experience the wind of the four seasons. In order to maximize sunlight exposure into the building, designers from Denmark and Singapore conducted many optical tests in the early stages of designing an open lobby on the first floor, ensuring that more than half of the lighting in the museum is natural throughout the year.

Wu Jingguo from China News Agency: Mr. Samaranch once gave me four pieces of advice: "Find a loyal assistant, persist in exercising, balance your career, and handle family relationships properly." This is also his life wisdom and insights during his work at the Olympic Committee, and I hope everyone knows.

At the opening ceremony of this year's Chengdu Universiade, I saw that only one athlete from a delegation such as Liechtenstein participated, but received thunderous applause from the audience. This is a perfect display of our national style and Olympic spirit.

I recall the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics in the United States, where Liu Changchun represented China alone for the first time. The Ta Kung Pao once wrote: "As a Chinese athlete, I have traveled thousands of miles to the Olympics alone. At this difficult moment, our national fortune is facing difficulties. May all of you bravely move forward, and may future generations like us stay away from such hardships." From that moment on, China has been "eyeing the Olympics for thousands of years" and "enduring them for a long time.".

The Samaranch Memorial Museum has actively participated in international museum cultural exchanges for 10 years. Every year, it participates in the annual meeting of the International Olympic Museums Union and plans various types of rich and diverse themed exhibitions, providing a platform for cultural exchange for communities, nursing homes, special groups, and more.

The memorial hall also attracts scholars and college students from various fields on both sides of the Taiwan Strait to exchange and learn here every year, building a bridge connecting the two sides of the Taiwan Strait and promoting "closer, closer, and more united" between the two sides.

The Samaranch Memorial Hall not only promotes the integration of sports, culture, and education, but also conveys the spirit of challenging the limits of the Olympics, the belief that transcends time and space, and the dream of allowing people from all corners of the world to participate in sports.

Interviewee profile:

Wu Jingguo, born in Chongqing in 1946, currently resides in Taiwan. He was a former Executive Member of the International Olympic Committee, founder and director of the Samaranch Memorial Hall, and founder and director of the Tianjin Dagang Olympic Museum. Graduated from the Department of Architecture at Donghai University in Taiwan in 1970, studied Royal Architects at Oxford School of Architecture in the UK from 1971 to 1973, and studied at the Institute of Architecture at the University of Liverpool in the UK from 1974 to 1977. He has written books such as "Off Olympic Sports - Wu Jingguo's Five Rings Oath" and "Olympic Chinese Sentiment".

Original "Wu Jingguo: Why did the World's Only Samaranch Memorial Hall settle in Tianjin? | East West Question"