[双语新闻] 老外翻译潘克伦眼中的姚巨人

Chinese basketball legend Yao Ming formally announced his retirement Wednesday, ending a groundbreaking but injury-plagued career that included eight all-star appearances when he was the center for the NBA's Houston Rockets. Shortly after Yao was selected as the No. 1 pick in the 2002 NBA draft, he was paired with a translator, Colin Pine. A 'not-very-tall, not-very-athletic man' in the words of a 2003 profile on NPR's 'This American Life,' Mr. Pine spent three years translating for the 7-foot-6-inch Yao before moving to China in 2005. They have remained friends.
中国篮球传奇人物姚明周三正式宣布退役，结束了具有开创意义但饱受伤病折磨的职业篮球生涯，其中包括他代表美国职业篮球联赛（NBA）休斯顿火箭队（Houston Rockets）八次亮相全明星赛。2002年成为NBA选秀状元后不久，姚明就有了一个翻译──潘克伦（Colin Pine）。用2003年美国国家公共广播电台（NPR）“美国生活”（This American Life》节目有关于他的一期专题中的话来说，潘克伦是一个“不是很高、不是很健壮的男人”。在2005年搬到中国之前，潘克伦为身高2.29米的姚明做了三年翻译。他们一直是朋友。

China Real Time caught up with Mr. Pine on Thursday, a day after he reprised his translator role one more time at Yao's retirement ceremony in Shanghai, and asked him for his thoughts on the player's career:
周三在姚明宣布退役的新闻发布会上，他再次担任了翻译的角色。周四，《中国实时报》联系上了潘克伦，并请他谈了对姚明职业生涯的看法：

What do you think Yao's impact has been on China?
问：你怎么看姚明对中国的影响？

My outlook is a little bit clouded by my personal relationship with Yao. We were so close, especially during that first year. I've never been able to have a proper perspective on him outside of the concept of my time with him.
答：我的看法有点受到我和姚明私人关系的影响。我们太亲近了，特别是在第一年。我从来都无法跳出我们在一起时形成的观念对他进行恰当的评价。

Not to say that I don't realize the impact he's had. He's helped to popularize basketball, but I think basketball has transcended Yao in China. So many people are playing basketball, it has grown beyond Yao.
并不是说我没有意识到他拥有的影响力。他促进了篮球运动的普及，但我认为篮球在中国已经超越了姚明。有那么多人在打篮球，篮球的发展已经超越了姚明。

So when you see him in ads all over China, you just think, that's my old friend?
问：所以当你在中国那么多广告里看见他的时候，你只是觉得，那是我的老朋友？

It's a little weird for me to see him on insurance advertisements or whatever he's sponsoring at the moment. I don't know how to express it--it's almost funny to me.
答：看到他出现在保险公司的广告里或任何他正在赞助的活动时，我都感觉有点怪。我不知道怎么表达，在我看来就是近乎好笑。

Have you been in touch with him since his decision to retire?
问：他决定退役后你们有过联系吗？

I translated for him at the ceremony yesterday. It was touching for him to ask me to be there. It wasn't something I was expecting.
答：我昨天在发布会上担任他的翻译。他请我去我很感动。我没想到他会邀请我去。

We do keep in touch, not on a regular basis. We talk on the phone every once in a while. The last time I'd translated for him was in October.
我们确实保持着联系，但不经常。我们偶尔会通电话。我上一次做他的翻译是在去年10月。

You've known Yao for nearly a decade. How did you meet him?
问：你认识姚明将近10年了。你是怎么认识他的？

I was in law school, looking for full-time translation jobs. I was living in Washington D.C. and a friend of mine had an advertisement that came across her desk. They were looking for an interpreter for a basketball player, didn't say the name, but it was in Houston so it was clear who it was. I sent my materials in and heard from Yao's agent. I didn't meet Yao until the day he arrived in the U.S.
答：当时我在法学院读书，在找全职的翻译工作。当时我住在华盛顿特区，一个朋友偶然发现她桌子上有张招聘广告。他们在为一个篮球运动员找翻译，没说名字，但是在休斯顿，所以是谁就显而易见了。我把我的资料送过去了，然后收到姚明经纪人的回信。姚明抵达美国的那天我才见到他。

What do you remember as your first impression about him?
问：你记得对他的第一印象是什么？

The first thing, of course, is his size. As obvious as it is, it's imposing. You're just taken aback by it the first time.
答：首先当然是他的身材了。很明显是高大无比。第一次见到会让人吓一跳。

The second thing is his humor. He was 22 years old, a young guy, he had some English but not a lot. All these things that were thrown at him, he handled it with aplomb.
还有就是他的幽默。当时他22岁，是个年轻的小伙子，会说些英语，但不多。别人向他提的哪些问题他都会沉着应对。

How at ease he was with himself was quite evident. He knows exactly who he is and is very comfortable in his own skin.
明显能看到他有多么放松。他确切地知道自己是谁，对做自己感到驾轻就熟。

How has he changed since those early years?
问：这些年来他有什么变化？

He's grown up a lot. He was always mature for his age, but now you can see even more how focused he is. He knows exactly what he wants. He has a very mature attitude about life in general.
答：他成熟了很多。他总是比实际年龄看起来成熟，但现在你能看到他的目标更加明确了。他准确地知道自己想要什么。他对整个生活有着十分成熟的态度。

What do you think Yao's legacy will be as an NBA player?
问：你认为姚明作为NBA球员会获得怎样的盖棺定论？

I'm not a basketball blogger or anything, so as to the Hall of Fame or historical standing, I don't know. He was a great player, he meant so much to so many people. He'll never be forgotten.
答：我不是篮球博客写手一类的人，所以对于名人堂或历史地位，我不知道怎么说。他是个优秀的球员，他对太多人都意义重大。他永远不会被遗忘。

Would his perception in history have changed if he hadn't suffered so many injuries?
问：如果不是受过这么多伤，他对过去事情的看法会不会有所不同？

Who can say? It's really hard to say, there are tons of what-ifs.
答：谁知道呢？真的很难说，有太多的如果。