Yao Ming receives the letter of appointment at a meeting of the Shanghai Public Diplomacy Association in Shanghai, on Monday, after being chosen as deputy chairman of the association. [Photo / Xinhua]

SHANGHAI - Chinese basketball's big man, the retired NBA star Yao Ming, accepted his first semi-official position on Monday to work toward boosting Shanghai's international image.

Yao, a Shanghai native, was chosen as the deputy chairman of the Shanghai Public Diplomacy Association (SPDA). The semi-official organization, under the Shanghai Committee of Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, was set up to build on the relationship between the city's people and government and the world.

"As I understand it, sports is a very important part of public diplomacy," Yao said, citing the example of Ping-Pong Diplomacy. He said he will learn from that precedent and use his influence in China and the US to boost communication, understanding and cooperation.

In April 1971, China invited the US Table Tennis Team, which was in Japan for the 31st World Table Tennis Championship, to visit China. It was a significant step China made toward re-establishing Sino-US relations.

Yao said that he is thankful for the opportunity and looks forward to helping promote Shanghai's international image.

Retiring as a professional basketball player in July after eight years in NBA, Yao now runs a restaurant, basketball club and winery, and studies at Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

Feng Guoqin, chairman of the Shanghai Committee of Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, said Yao's participation will definitely help the association.

"Yao is very popular and influential in China and abroad. His participation is a tremendous boon for promoting Shanghai in the world," he said.Yao, who entered the NBA draft in 2002 and was an eight-time NBA All-Star, has been called China's biggest export to the United States.

He impressed the world with his combination of height, strength, skills, sporting spirit, and humor, modesty and tolerance. Through this, he promoted the international image of the Chinese people.

He has had prominent roles as a cultural ambassador and commercial spokesman, participating in the promotion of public events such as the Shanghai World Expo. But for him, serving as the deputy chairman of the SPDA is something very different.

"I am used to influencing people with body language, you know, like playing basketball. Being a spokesman is something like that - you influence others by your words and deeds. But working with the SPDA means I'll shoulder specific responsibilities," he said.

Wu Jinlan, secretary-general of the SPDA, said the organization is in talks with the city of Chicago about reciprocal promotion campaigns. If the initiative is successful, Shanghai intends to undertake similar cooperative efforts with cities in Australia and Italy.