耐克擬借"林來瘋"在華推廣產品
Nike is developing plans to use Jeremy Lin, US basketball's newest star, to market its products in China as it tries to maintain rapid growth in a region where its annual revenues are heading towards $3bn.
耐克(Nike)正擬訂計劃，打算利用美國籃球界最新湧現的明星林書豪(Jeremy Lin)在中國推廣產品。該公司在中國的年收入正朝着30億美元邁進，它試圖保持在華業務的快速增長。
Mr Lin, a son of Taiwanese immigrants who has been sponsored by Nike since 2010, has gone from second-string obscurity to stardom this month by securing a series of victories for the New York Knicks.
本月，林書豪為紐約尼克斯隊(New York Knicks)拿下多場比賽，從一名不為人知的二線球員一躍成為明星。林書豪是台灣移民的後裔，自2010年起得到耐克贊助。
Charlie Denson, president of the Nike brand, told the Financial Times that the world's biggest sporting goods maker by sales was already exploring ways to profit from its most unexpected celebrity in China.
耐克品牌總裁查理?丹森(Charlie Denson)向英國《金融時報》表示，該公司已在研究如何利用它最意想不到的明星在中國獲利。以銷量計，耐克是全球最大的體育用品製造商。
"No question. We're developing plans as we speak,' he said. "The fact he's experiencing the kind of success he's having now is a very, very pleasant surprise for us.' Nike, however, declined to comment on rumours that it was working on a Lin signature shoe.
“毫無疑問，此時此刻我們正在擬訂相關計劃。”他説，“他正在經歷的這種成功，令我們喜出望外。”不過，耐克拒絕就有關該公司正籌劃推出林書豪簽名球鞋的傳言置評。
The US company is seeking to benefit from the growing number of people playing sport in China, where basketball is already hugely popular as a spectator sport.
在中國，從事體育運動的人越來越多，而作為一種觀賞性項目，籃球已在中國擁有極高的人氣。耐克這家美國公司希望藉此獲利。
State-owned media in China were at first slow to jump on the Lin story, appearing wary of his professions of devout Christianity; the ruling Communist party is officially atheist. But among ordinary fans, his popularity has soared. He now has more than 2m followers on Weibo, China's version of Twitter.
中國國有媒體最初在報道林書豪現象時有些遲疑，似乎對林書豪虔誠的基督教信仰保持警惕；執政的共產黨在理論上是無神論者。但在普通球迷中，林書豪的人氣急速上升。目前，他在微博（中國版Twitter）上的粉絲已經超過200萬。
Asked how Mr Lin's Taiwanese background would affect Nike's plans, Mr Denson said: "We'll see. We haven't really got that far yet. All we know is that the kids who love basketball in China relate to Jeremy Lin. You know there are certain things that transcend certain things, and sometimes sport transcends governmental boundaries."
在被問及林書豪的台灣背景會對耐克的計劃產生何種影響時，丹森談到，“再説吧。我們還沒有真的走到那一步。我們只知道中國那些喜歡籃球的孩子們很欣賞林書豪。你知道，有些事是可以超越另一些事的，體育有時可以跨越政府的界限。”
譯者:何黎
