Li Ning (; ; born March 10, 1963, in Liuzhou, Guangxi) is a Chinese billionaire entrepreneur, the founder of the eponymous sportswear company Li-Ning, and retired gymnast of Zhuang ethnicity. He lives in Hong Kong.
Gymnastics career
Li started training when he was eight and was selected for the national team in 1980. In 1982, he won six of the seven medals awarded at the Sixth World Cup Gymnastic Competition, earning him the title "Prince of Gymnastics" ().
Li is most famous for winning six medals at the 1984 Summer Olympics, the first Olympics in which the People's Republic of China participated. He won three gold medals (in floor exercise, pommel horse, and rings), two silver medals, and one bronze medal. Li became the most decorated Chinese athlete at the first Olympics that China participated in after the founding of the People's Republic in October 1949.
Li won 11 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships medals, including gold medals in the rings (1985) and team all-around (1983). Li remains chairman of the company's board of directors. According to Hurun Report's China Rich List 2014, he has an estimated fortune of RMB 5 billion, making him the 407th wealthiest person in China.
Li was inducted into the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame in 2000, becoming the first Chinese inductee.
In 2017, a statue was erected in his honor on the shores of Lake Geneva in Montreux.
At the 2008 Summer Olympics, Li ignited the cauldron at the opening ceremony after being hoisted high into the air with cables and miming running around the stadium's rim.
Filmography
- To Cross the Dadu River (1980)
- Uprising of Nam Cheong City (1981) as Wang Jing-Wei