Think of Chinese sports and most likely the first thing that comes to mind is with Bruce Lee or Yao Ming.

But Chinese sport is more than these icons, in fact, dragon boat racing dates back about 2000 years ago and, to this day, remain a popular traditional sporting event.

Furthermore, evidence suggests that a sport similar to Football called "Cuju" was played in China during the 2nd and 3rd centuries BC.

Modern sports, as we know it today, arrived in China in the beginning of the 20th Century. The Chinese has seen the value of sports, not just in physical fitness terms but in promoting pride and nationalism as well, and has since supported talented amateur players. Proof is the continued success of Chinese athletes in the Olympics.

Ping pong (table tennis) is one of the biggest amateur recreational sports in China today. It is estimated tat 200 million players play the sport. Badminton is also well established and quite popular in China.

Volleyball is also quite popular. The gold-medal game of the 2004 women's volleyball Olympics was watched by 30% of TV-owning households according to CCTV Sports Channel. Meanwhile, China vs. Brazil in the 2002 Volleyball World Cup was watched by 18% of TV-owning households.

Football and Basketball are also regularly shown on TV and has a passionate following.

The English Premier League, the Italian Serie A and the German Bundesliga all have a solid Chinese fan base. Likewise, the National Basketball Association (NBA), with stars like Yao Ming, Kobe Bryant and LeBron James, has a loyal following.

With the increasing popularity of modern sports in China, comes the attractiveness of betting on these sporting events. tiyubocai.com is your comprehensive guide to these popular Chinese sports and how on them - just click on your preferred sport!