May 15, 2008	Thursday	Jamadi-ul-Awwal 9, 1429

JAKARTA, May 14: The Chinese squad defending their Thomas and Uber Cup titles in the Indonesian capital have donated money to victims of the earthquake that has devastated Sichuan province.

Thomas Cup team manager Li Yongbo said everyone had been affected by what happened, with at least three squad members coming from the province, although he did not say if any of them had family in the quake zone.

“The whole team is very concerned and are determined to help out,” he said. “They have all donated money and are watching what happens closely.”

Li would not say how much money had been collected, but a Chinese journalist said he told them earlier that they had donated 200,000 renminbi (28,500 US dollars).

Whole towns have been all but wiped off the map in the 7.9-magnitude earthquake that struck on Monday, with the death toll exceeding 20,000.

—AFP