One of China's most famous basketball coaches, Jiang Xingquan, officially bid farewell to the Zhejiang Golden Bulls on Thursday after serving the Yiwu-based club as a consultant for three years.

Jiang, 80, decided to resign with his contract about to expire and the Chinese Basketball Association league yet to resume following its suspension due to the COVID-19 epidemic.

"He accepted our invitation at the age of 77, and we will always feel grateful," read a Bulls statement announcing Jiang's exit.

"At the moment, it is difficult to express our feelings with appropriate words. We hope we can win one victory after another in return."

Signing off, Jiang said: "I'm sorry to leave the team at this special time. I will always care about and support our team as before."

Xinhua