Photo: Keith Allison from Baltimore, USA / CC BY-SA 3.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
Yao Ming is a basketball player, autobiographer and entrepreneur, born on September 12, 1980 in Shanghai, People's Republic of China. As of 2026, Yao Ming is 46 years old. Schooling on record includes Shanghai No. 2 High School and Antai College of Economics and Management, Shanghai Jiao Tong University. Recorded honors include honorary doctor of the University of Hong Kong, Pioneer of Reform (2018) and FIBA Hall of Fame. The listed height is 229 cm.
My Take
What impresses me most about Yao Ming isn't the 229 centimeters — it's what he did with the platform that height gave him. He carried the expectations of an entire country into the NBA and handled nine seasons in Houston with humor, grace, and a work ethic that silenced skeptics. Then, instead of coasting, he went back to school for economics and management and took on the unglamorous work of running basketball institutions. Most superstars retire into nostalgia; Yao retired into responsibility. To me he remains the gold standard for how an athlete converts fame into lasting influence, bridging two basketball cultures that badly needed a translator.
This take was written by generative AI, one per person, from publicly reported facts (editorial policy). It is a reading of the record, not reporting.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Yao Ming
- Name (Japanese)
- 姚明
- Reading
- やお・みん
- Born
- September 12, 1980 (age 46)
- Origin
- Shanghai, People's Republic of China
- Height
- 229 cm
- Occupation
- basketball player / autobiographer / entrepreneur
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Virgo / Monkey
2. Background
- High school
- Shanghai No. 2 High School
- University
- Antai College of Economics and Management, Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Awards & achievements
- honorary doctor of the University of Hong Kong
- 2018 Pioneer of Reform
- FIBA Hall of Fame
3. Links
- Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/yao/
- Xhttps://x.com/yaoming
- Wikipedia (English)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yao%20Ming
- Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%A7%9A%E6%98%8E
- Wikidatahttps://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q58590
4. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
Only publicly available facts are listed; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. Base data was compiled from Wikidata from June 2026 onward; ages are recalculated daily and deaths are checked against Wikidata on an ongoing basis. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.
Frequently asked questions
When was Yao Ming born?
Yao Ming was born on September 12, 1980 and is 46 years old.
Where is Yao Ming from?
Yao Ming is from Shanghai, People's Republic of China.
What does Yao Ming do?
Yao Ming works as basketball player, autobiographer, entrepreneur.
How tall is Yao Ming?
Yao Ming is 229 cm tall.
Where did Yao Ming study?
Yao Ming attended Antai College of Economics and Management, Shanghai Jiao Tong University.
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