“There is a language barrier when traveling by taxi. Few people speak English. » Shved’s agent on life as a basketball player in China

Russian basketball player “Shanxi Lungs” Alexei Shved There is a small language barrier when traveling by taxi in China, but otherwise the defender does not feel any problems adapting, said the athlete’s agent Obrad Fimich in an interview with .

The 34-year-old Swede left CSKA Moscow this summer and moved to Shanxi at the end of October.

— Alexey Shved has already played six matches after moving to China. Does he like everything?

— Yes, Alexei adapts quickly. This is not his first trip abroad, before that he had already visited the NBA. It is clear that China is a completely different world, a different way of life. But the schedule is very tight, they play every two or three days. The Swede therefore concentrates entirely on basketball. Additionally, he didn’t play for almost half a year. I miss you.

Yes, it’s a little more difficult with the family, since there are young children. But overall, everyone likes it. We didn’t expect that the city of Taiyuan itself (the administrative center of Shanxi province – editor’s note from ) would leave such a positive impression.

— Did I understand correctly that Alexei moved his entire family at once?

– Exactly. They all moved in together at the same time. We were waiting for special permission for this. Usually other players weren’t allowed, but he was. Maybe because he’s Russian. There are therefore positive aspects in certain countries in this regard. We were provided with two large hotel rooms. Usually they only give one, but here they give two at once. We were allowed to cook at the hotel. The hotel itself is of a very good standard. The guys say they really like everything. The only thing is that there are slight difficulties in moving around the city, because in Asia, in principle, people communicate little in English. It’s understandable. It’s a huge country, why do they need this…

— So there is still a language barrier?

– Yes a little bit. It is mainly associated with movement, with taxis. But they just moved. Therefore, I think they will always understand it.

— You said it was allowed to cook at the hotel. How did your relationship with Chinese cuisine develop?

— Alexey and the family like it! But when you have young children, you can’t eat out all the time. Therefore, Nastya (the wife of the Swede – approx. “”) cooks for the children in the hotel, and the parents themselves often eat in the restaurant. They say it is very tasty. The food there is perfectly suited to us Europeans.

— Have any obvious problems arisen in Chinese life?

— So far, there are no unpleasant situations or moments that we cannot handle. The only obstacle is communication, as I said. You must communicate through a translator. But this is a common situation. Often, foreign basketball players in Asia have to communicate through an interpreter, Fimich told .