Cheng Ho of Choxue says he wants to make athletics matter in Asia. Participating in sports means students learn soft skills like teamwork, effective communication and the ability to think outside of the box. However, Asia's education culture favours cram schools and focusing on academics only. Choxue is on a mission to change that.
Former Harvard running back Cheng Ho, Choxue’s CEO and founder, is the definition of grit and hard work. Choxue is a startup with a mission to make athletics part of education in Asia. Some of Choxue’s investors include Alibaba Executive Vice Chairman and Brooklyn Nets owner Joe Tsai, Costco Wholesale SVP Asia Richard Chang and celebrity Blackie Chen. (Richard retired from playing semi professional basketball and went to UC Berkeley on a NCAA basketball scholarship.)
In this episode, Cheng and I talked about how integrating athletics into a student’s life helps them learn teamwork, communication and leadership skills, which is missing from Asia’s education framework. Instead, kids in Asia spend their after school hours in cram schools and tutoring classes focusing on academics.
Cheng immigrated to the US after being adopted by his aunt and uncle. As a middle schooler who didn’t know a word of English, he dived into basketball and football. Getting called racial slurs made him want to be the best athlete he could be and prove he was more than the colour of his skin.
Cheng and I also talked about:
👋The first American friend he made at school in Augusta, Georgia (who he still keeps in touch with now!)
🏈How he got into Harvard University on a football scholarship
🏀What it meant witnessing Linsanity, the rise of Jeremy Lin in the NBA, an Asian American player, who was formerly Cheng’s dorm blockmate at Harvard
Prior to Choxue, Cheng worked for the National Football League, with a team that tried to bring football to China.