Sick man of East Asia

Since 1979 , the health of the Chinese people has improved further . The label on old China , " sick man of East Asia ," has long been consigned to the dustbin of history .

从1979年至今，中国人民的体质又有了明显的提高，彻底甩掉了旧中国东亚病夫的帽子。

Indeed , with a centralized capital and the advantage of human resources , Chinese sports had made great success in some aspects , walking out of backwardness and shaking off the forced insulting title Sick Man of East Asia .

诚然，计划经济集中资金和人才资源的优势确实让中国体育在某些领域内获得成功，快速实现了体育脱贫，使中国人彻底地甩掉了东亚病夫的帽子。

The comparison leads many fans to revive the century-old Chinese concept that sporting weakness reflects a weak society the idea that China will not be able to fully cast off its identity as the " sick man of East Asia " until its soccer players triumph on the pitch .

这种比较使许多球迷回想起中国一种存在了百年的观念，即体育上的弱势反映了社会的软弱如果足球队不能在球场上获胜，中国就无法完全摆脱其“东亚病夫”的身份。