Recently, the investigation of Li Quanqiang, the former director of the Volleyball Management Center, has caused a stir, making Chinese volleyball, following football, the focus of public attention. As the light shines on Li Quanqiang's case, another influential figure from the past in the women's volleyball field has come to light—Pan Zhichen.
Pan Zhichen began his career as a private sports teacher. His background as a non-professional athlete sets him apart from the traditional image of high-level sports administrators. However, "heroes are not questioned about their origins," and he rose to important positions such as the director of the Volleyball Management Center through his abilities and opportunities.
During his tenure, Pan Zhichen was very low-key, rarely giving media interviews. This low-key approach may reflect his personality, but it also suggests that he had his own unique pace and methods when dealing with work. In terms of business, he showed a talent for communication and listening to opinions. For example, when the Chinese women's volleyball team faced difficulties and was in a trough period of development, Pan Zhichen made a significant move that would later have a profound impact on the team's rise to glory. He went to Guangdong to invite Lang Ping to come out of retirement and coach the Chinese women's volleyball team.
Lang Ping was a shining star in the sports world at the time. She had achieved certain success coaching abroad and was offered an attractive annual salary of 5 million yuan by Guangzhou Evergrande Women's Volleyball Team when she returned to coach them. This is a very appealing condition for any professional coach. However, Pan Zhichen impressed Lang Ping with great sincerity and effort. He offered her an annual salary of 2 million yuan and firmly supported her implementation of the "Big National Team" management concept. This support was not just administrative approval but provided assistance in resource allocation, policy encouragement, and more. After Lang Ping returned to coach, with Pan Zhichen's support, the Chinese women's volleyball team gradually revived and eventually reached new heights on the international stage multiple times.
Pan Zhichen made certain contributions to the development of the Chinese women's volleyball team, and logically, he should have continued to write his chapter in the field of volleyball management. However, "greed is never satisfied," and power and temptation often erode the heart without notice.
In 2015, Pan Zhichen found himself caught up in a storm of investigations. It turned out that during his tenure as the director of the Bicycle Fencing Sports Management Center and the Volleyball Sports Management Center of the General Administration of Sport, he was found to have used his position to provide improper assistance to eight entities, including Beijing Taiao Sports Culture Development Co., Ltd., Zhongao Sports Industry Co., Ltd., and Liaoning Sports Bureau, in various aspects such as bidding for sports events, participating in sports events, and becoming event suppliers. Behind this, he received a total of 930,000 yuan and 40,000 US dollars in benefits. After being discovered, his act of returning 500,000 yuan could not cover up his serious mistakes. Ultimately, the law made a fair judgment, and he was not only sentenced to four years in prison but also fined 300,000 yuan.
This incident serves as a profound warning. "Don't reach out; if you do, you will be caught." No matter what achievements a person makes in their job or how outstanding their contributions are to the development of the Chinese women's volleyball team, if they cannot maintain the bottom line of integrity and self-discipline in the face of temptation, they will ultimately be sanctioned by the law.
More broadly, sports management departments bear the important mission of promoting the development of sports. Every decision and execution of work should follow the principles of fairness, justice, and openness. Pan Zhichen's case reminds all sports workers that while pursuing sports achievements, they must not neglect the cultivation of moral character and must always adhere to the bottom line of professional ethics to ensure the healthy and sustainable development of the sports industry.
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