September 12, 1986, Dodger President Peter O’Malley greets Li Ruihuan, Mayor of Tianjin, People’s Republic of China at Grand Opening ceremonies for “Dodger Baseball Field” at Tianjin Institute for Physical Culture. Ruihuan was mayor of Tianjin from 1982-1989. China’s first field dedicated to baseball was privately built by O’Malley. Ruihuan later became a member of the Chinese Communist Party Political Bureau’s Standing Committee at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.
Biography
Li Ruihuan
Li Ruihuan is a retired government official and one of the influential leaders of the People’s Republic of China. Ruihuan was the Mayor of Tianjin, People’s Republic of China when Peter O’Malley opened the first field dedicated to baseball in that country. Ruihuan participated in dedication ceremonies and receptions for “Dodger Baseball Field” on September 12, 1986 at the Tianjin Institute of Physical and Cultural Education. Ruihuan served in the high-ranking government position of Mayor of Tianjin from 1982-1989 and then became a member of the Chinese Communist Party Political Bureau’s Standing Committee at the Great Hall of The People in Beijing. He was part of China’s powerful decision-making body from 1989-2002.
On July 6, 1990, O’Malley met with Ruihuan at the Great Hall of The People. Ruihuan worked in construction as a carpenter by trade. His invention of the “simplified calculation method,” changing from the traditional “lofting method,” pushed him up the ranks in the industry and later into Tianjin politics. He was elected and reelected as chairman of the 8th and 9th Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CCPPCC), becoming the sixth chairman. He followed Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, Deng Xiaoping, Deng Yingchao and Li Xiannian.