Huang Jianxiang

Huang Jianxiang (born January 20, 1968) is a Chinese sports commentator and television host.

He is one of the best-known sports commentators in China, formerly of the state-run network China Central Television (CCTV).

He was fairly well received in his commentating of football, particularly at the FIFA World Cup, the German Bundesliga, and the Italian Serie A.

Huang Jianxiang was born in 1968 in Wuhai, Inner Mongolia.

He grew up in a family of football fans.

His grandfather and his father were two early football fans in China.

He became a football enthusiast in his school years.

His family relocated to Nanjing in 1977.

He attended the High School Affiliated to Nanjing Normal University, in Nanjing.

He stated that he could not be impartial all the time and he did dislike the Socceroos because the team reminded him of the New Zealand team which defeated and eliminated the Chinese national team under controversial circumstances in the 1981 World Cup qualifying tournament.

Huang's commentary sparked a barrage of complaints as well as several press criticisms the following day.

His commentary was replaced with another commentator's when the video of the match was replayed by CCTV.

After reviewing his commentary, Huang eventually apologised on the state-run CCTV the next day, and posted an apology on its website for his unwarranted prejudice.

He did not commentate on the next game.

In 1990, he graduated from the China Foreign Affairs University, receiving a bachelor's degree in foreign languages.

By the late 1990s, Huang had established himself as one of the most prominent sports announcers on Chinese television.

He joined China Central Television (CCTV) in 1994 as a sports commentator.

Huang first appeared on CCTV-5, the national sports channel, with veteran commentator Li Weimiao, during the commentating for the 1995 Copa América.

Huang has also been a principal commentator for CCTV at the Olympic Games in Atlanta 1996, 2000 Sydney, Athens 2004, Turin 2006.

In 1996, Huang commentated on the 1996 Summer Olympics, the 1996 European Football Championship and the Asian Cup 1996.

In 1997 Huang commentated on the 8th National Games of the People's Republic of China.

In 1998, Huang commentated on the FIFA World Cup in France, the Asian Games in Bangkok, Thailand, and the African Cup of Nations held in West Africa.

In 1999, Huang commentated on the FIFA Women's World Cup 1999 in the United States.

In 2000, he commentated on the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia.

In 2002, he commentated on the 2002 FIFA World Cup held in South Korea and Japan.

In 2004, commentated on the 2004 Summer Olympics in Greece.

Huang received widespread international attention during a World Cup commentary incident on June 26, 2006 when he commentated on the match between Australia and Italy, where he yelled passionately for several minutes in support of Italy.

Huang's commentary resulted in widespread controversy and was criticized by his colleagues, online commentators, and some foreign media.

He resigned from CCTV in November 2006.

Since resigning, Huang has worked for a wide variety of Chinese satellite TV stations, including Hong Kong-based Phoenix TV, sports channel CSPN, and regional satellite stations in Ningxia, Xinjiang, Shenzhen, Jiangsu, Shandong, Zhejiang, and Tianjin.

He has also worked for LeTV.com.

In 2006, Huang commentated on the 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany.

On June 26, 2006(UTC+8 June 27 03:00), during the FIFA World Cup match between Italy and Australia, as the on-field commentator of CCTV, Huang Jianxiang unexpectedly revealed his pro-Italian bias in an anti-Australian rant while commentating on the last minutes of a live match broadcast to many millions in China.

This commentary has been compared to Bjørge Lillelien's "Your boys took one hell of a beating".

He shouted himself hoarse in the process, and celebrated the Socceroos' exit from the Cup:

Huang was initially unapologetic for his controversial commentary in the post-game linkup with CCTV.

Huang appeared live on CCTV again while he acted as commentator to the Germany vs. Argentina (BallackVSTangoBrigade) match on 30 June 2006, which quashed the rumour that he has been dismissed by CCTV.

He commentated on many subsequent matches, including the final between France and Italy held in Berlin on 9 July 2006.

In all these matches, Huang was paired with a fellow commentator.

Since 2013, Huang has been a host on the show Only You (非你莫属) on Tianjin Television, a game show-style program designed for people seeking employment.