China's Olympic Coach Returns to Springfield (August 28, 1948)
Description:
This is a newspaper article about Gunsun Hoh (Hao Gengsheng; 郝更生) coming back to Springfield College (then known as the International YMCA College) to visit the city of Springfield and the college campus (August 28, 1948). The article talks about Gunsun Hoh's work as a head coach of the Chinese Olympic team and national supervisor of physical education in China. It also highlights Hoh's contributions in organizing national competitions. Beside the article, there is a photograph of Hoh meeting Dr. Laurence Doggett, former president of Springfield College, during his visit. Gunsun Hoh (Hao Gengsheng; 郝更生) was born on June 14, 1899. He was a Springfield College alumnus from the class of 1923 and a major figure in China’s physical education movement. Immediately after graduation, Hoh began working as a physical education director at the YMCA in Shanghai and then the YMCA in Hankow. In 1925, he became the director of physical education at what is now Tsinghua University in Beijing. In 1938, Hoh moved away from the YMCA and began directing physical education in a number of different colleges and universities. In 1943, he became the physical education director for the National Ministry of Education. Among a number of other achievements while serving in this role, Hoh prepared China’s top athletes for the 1948 and 1952 Olympic Games. Widely published, he has served as a professor of six universities in China and as a national leader in all phases of sports and physical education in Asian countries. In 1950, he began working with the National Ministry of Education in Taiwan. In 1973, Springfield College presented him with the Distinguished Alumni Award.
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