Wang Zhizhi refuses again to return to China

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=afp-basket_chn&prov=afp&type=lgns

BEIJING (AFP) - Los Angeles Clipper Wang Zhizhi has decided not to
jeopardize his multi-million dollar NBA contract and will not return
to China's national team to play in this month's Asian Basketball
Championships, state press said Sunday.

Wang, China's first-ever player in the world's most prestigious
basketball league has cited his relationship with the People's
Liberation Army (PLA) as the main reason that he cannot return to
China, the Titan Sports Weekly reported.

The seven-foot (2.12-meter) power forward was formerly a member of the
military's Bayi Rockets and as an enlisted member of the People's
Liberation Army (PLA) he does not travel with an ordinary passport,
the paper said.

According to the paper, the PLA refused to approve Wang's
demobilization so that he could obtain a civilian passport and
continue his NBA career.

The refusal came despite efforts by the China Basketball Association
to bring Wang back to the national team, which will vie for Asia's
only spot at the 2004 Athens Olympics during the Sept 23-Oct 3 Asian
Basketball Championships in Harbin, China.

Wang's present passport is currently out of date, the paper said, and
the United States immigration authorities apparently will not issue
him another visa since it would duplicate his current status as a US
green-card holder or permanent US resident.