- Zhang Ziyu, from East China’s Shandong Province, is aged 14 and 7-foot-4 inches tall.
- She has gained traction on social media for her natural aptitude for basketball.
- People on Twitter are drawing comparisons to her and fellow Chinese basketball player Yao Ming.
- Visit Insider’s homepage for more stories.
For a 14-year-old girl, the average height is 5-foot-2, but Zhang Ziyu likes to stand out from the crowd. She is 7-foot-4 inches tall.
Ziyu, from East China’s Shandong Province, has gained traction on social media for her talent in basketball – with one video showing her scoring 42 points, 25 rebounds, and six blocks in an under-15s tournament, according to the Chinese state-affiliated outlet, Global Times.
The video sees her towering over her opponents, easily blocking their attempts at scoring a basket and throwing the obtained ball over their heads.
—Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) July 15, 2021
Commenters were quick to draw comparisons to NBA star and fellow Chinese basketball star Yao Ming, who was 7-foot-6.
Some people marveled at Ziyu’s natural abilities and talents on Twitter, but others complained of an unequal advantage towards her.
Basketball has always been a sport dominated by some of the tallest people, with the tallest professional player – China’s Sun Mingming – measuring in at vertiginous 7-foot-8.
Her height doesn’t only inform Ziyu’s talent – she comes from a line of professional basketball players.
Her mother, Yu Ying, played on China’s national women’s basketball team, and her father was also a professional player.
