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Top producer wants to leave legacy
By Lei Lei (China Daily)
Updated: 2007-06-01 13:29
After covering six Olympic Games, Ma Guoli has carved a unique niche for himself in the arena of Chinese sports broadcasting.
He used to be the director of the Sports Programming Center of CCTV, China's national television network, but has now moved even deeper into the industry as the chief operation officer (COO) of Beijing Olympic Broadcasting Co Ltd (BOB).
"Having three years to do exactly what I want to do is a once-in-a-lifetime experience," said the 54-year-old journalist.
Ma Guoli,chief operation officer of Beijing Olympic Broadcasting Co Ltd, poses before the BOB headquarter shortly after its official launch to the public on May 31,2005. |
"Being the COO of BOB is the peak of my career. I'm delighted to be working with people who know what they can do, and what they should be doing."
Ma started out as a cameraman covering the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games. After that he got to witness and direct the development of CCTV's sports broadcasting.
In 1990, Beijing hosted its first Asian Games and CCTV's reporting of the event was considered a milestone in the country's sports coverage. Two years later at the Barcelona Games, Ma initiated live sports features as well as a live morning news program in his capacity as the deputy director of CCTV's sports center.
Ma Guoli
Born: April 4, 1953
1969 - 77: Photographer for the second flight team of the Civil Aviation Administration of China
1978 - 82: Student at the Beijing Broadcasting Institute (now the Communication University of China)
1982: Journalist of CCTV's sports department
1988: Head of CCTV's sports news group
1989: Vice-director of CCTV's sports department
1993: Director of CCTV's sports department
1998: Vice-director of CCTV Sports Center
2000: Director of CCTV Sports Center
May 2005: chief operation officer of Beijing Olympic Broadcasting Co Ltd (BOB) |
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"Although those were only small changes at the time, they were important ones," he said.
In Barcelona, CCTV housed its team in a small office of 20 square meters at the International Broadcasting Center (IBC). Four years later in Atlanta, it had graduated to a 300-square-metre studio.
"Having a studio as well as an office at the Games had been my dream since 1984, so when I opened the door of the studio in Atlanta, I felt overwhelmed to finally realize my dream," he said.
After Beijing won the rights to host the 2008 Games in 2001, a new opportunity came knocking: Ma was asked to leave CCTV, where he had worked for over 20 years, to take up a new position at BOB, which is in charge of providing International Television and Radio (ITVR) signals for broadcasters worldwide. Its responsibilities include planning, designing, installing, constructing and operating IBC and broadcasting facilities at other venues that will serve the rights-holding broadcasters during the Beijing Games.
BOB is expected to use around 1,000 cameras and build an 80,000-square meter IBC to produce approximately 4,000 hours of live Olympic coverage during the upcoming Games.
A cumulative worldwide audience of over 40 billion will watch the Games on more than 200 broadcasters. This figure refers to the number of times people tune in to the Games over the 16-day period.
Ma said he would like to combine the functions of the sports chief of CCTV and the COO of BOB to take Olympic broadcasting to a higher level.
"The director of CCTV's sports center decides exactly what and how the Chinese audience will watch their first Olympics at home," said Ma.
"BOB is the largest TV-producing company for the (Summer Games) every four years, but it is more about providing services and is more low-key. So, if possible, I would like to do both."
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