This article may be a rough translation from Chinese. It may have been generated, in whole or in part, by a computer or by a translator without dual proficiency. (June 2012) |
Zhang Jilong (born 9 February 1952[2] in Yantai, People's Republic of China) is a Chinese football admistrator who is the current President of the Asian Football Confederation since 14 June 2011. Jilong served as a Vice President of AFC from 2002 to 2011 and Senior-Vice President from 11 January 2007 to 1 August 2011. He is also a member of FIFA Executive Committee.
Zhang Jilong | |
|---|---|
 Zhilong, 2011 | |
| 10th President of AFC | |
| Assumed office 1 August 2011 Acting: 14 June 2011 - 1 August 2011[1] | |
| Vice President | Moya Dodd |
| Preceded by | Mohammed Bin Hammam |
| Senior-Vice President of AFC | |
| In office 11 January 2007 – 1 August 2011 | |
| President | Mohammed Bin Hammam |
| Preceded by | Ali Bin Khalifa |
| Succeeded by | Moya Dodd |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Zhang Jilong 9 February 1952 |
| Occupation | Football administrator |
Early life
He was born on 9 February 1952 in Yantai, Shandong Province. He was 17 when he started shipping work in Yantai. He joined the army at the end of that year as a correspondent for the Jinan Military Region. In 1972, Jilong started work at the National Education Committee, before going back to school at the Beijing Second Foreign Language Academy. After completion, he rejoined the National Sports Commission where he began to engage in foreign affairs. In his second year, he helped coach the Chinese sports delegation to Nigeria’s foreign aid work, at the age of 24 years. Foreign aid to Nigeria was mainly volleyball, table tennis, gymnastics and badminton coach advantages of the project, Zhang Jilong primarily responsible for translation and liaison work. Nigeria was still in poverty and hunger among the sport even further behind. Zhang Jilong spent a full two years and ten months. That experience made him a lot of accumulated experience, these experiences can not learn at home, but also affected his subsequent life path, “in retrospect, when I feel most is that we need to make friends, only friends all over the world circumstances, our business can thrive well developed, our status will rise higher and higher. “
Football careers
In 1978, Zhang returned home. When the Chinese Football Association was formally established, he was in the Football Association in foreign affairs. He then to the Football Association to work, basically a very old riding a bicycle, car destroyed an old briefcase. When it rains, he will wear the old black raincoat. When not busy, Zhang Jilong the first stop after work is vegetable market, home cook to cook for the family. Cycling to work, which is rare in football senior leadership, Nan Yong and Football Association Xie Yalong also live in the vicinity, but they have luxury cars, but in football there are also special parking spaces for the parking lot.
Zhang Jilong said that his style was to be an honest man and always present neat work. He stated that “this style can not be lost no matter what time, what we used to say, the Chinese character can not lose any time to be low-key, can not be overstated." “Zhang Jilong the Football Association’s official until 2008 when he was left China, Zhang Jilong were working here for 30 years. He is currently working football circles, the longest in the Football Association who has a record of 30 years, no one can break.[3]
AFC career
He became the AFC Finance Committee chairman on April 2000. After the election of Mohammed Bin Hammam as AFC President on 1 August 2002, he was named as one of his vice presidents. He was elected as Senior-Vice President on January 2007 by the AFC members. He ran for a seat on the FIFA executive committee on January 2011 but was defeated in a vote at the AFC's congress in Doha.[4]
Bin Hammam's suspension from FIFA was greeted with a wall of silence in Asia as soccer figures in the region took stock in the aftermath of a stunning turn of events. Bin Hammam had been due to stand against Sepp Blatter at the FIFA Congress in Zurich on 1 June 2011 but withdrew his candidacy a day before facing an ethics committee hearing on bribery allegations.
Bin Hammam and Jack Warner, President of CONCACAF, were suspended over bribery allegations while FIFA's ethics committee cleared President Blatter of any wrongdoing.
FIFA suspended Bin Hammam for life on 23 July 2011 and he was officially dismissed as head of Asian Football Confederation. On 29 July 2011, the members of AFC were informed that the Legal Committee was in agreement that an Extraordinary Congress for the election of President may be convened in the event that the office of President falls vacant for more than one year. This means that an Extraordinary Congress for this purpose could not be convened until after 30 May 2012 and Jilong will serve as President until that date. He was also elected a as member of the FIFA Executive Committee.