Li Shengjiao (厉声教) was a famed university sports star who went on to be advisor to China’s first Premier and key contributor to China becoming party to the International Law of the Sea.
李声教（厉声教）是一位著名的大学体育明星，他成为中国第一任总理的顾问，也是中国加入国际海洋法的关键贡献者。
Born in Nanjing on 7 January, 1935, to parents of some influence, Li was almost bound to be destined for some kind of greatness. The only question was to exactly the nature of his calling.
李于1935年1月7日出生在南京，父母有一定影响力，他几乎注定要走向某种伟大。 唯一的问题是他的使命的确切性质。
While Li’s mother was a pianist of quite some note, his father had earned himself the the nickname, “China’s Mahatma Gandhi”. As a pioneer in cultural exchanges between China and Europe in the 1930s, Li Linsi helped Jews to evade persecution as World War II unfolded, so that they may settle in Shanghai.
虽然李的母亲是一位相当有名的钢琴家，但他的父亲为自己赢得了“中国圣雄甘地”的绰号。 作为20世纪30年代中欧文化交流的先驱，随着第二次世界大战的展开，李林思帮助犹太人躲避迫害，这样他们就可以在上海定居。
But first, the younger Li need get an education. Choosing the unusual major of economic geology, Li was sufficiently distracted to excel at sport.
但首先，年轻的李需要接受教育。 选择了不寻常的经济地质学专业，李分心了，在体育方面表现出色。
Ultimately becoming table tennis champion of China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Li used his time at Nanjing University to rise to sporting province. A regular in the Nanjing municipal teams for both football and basketball, Li also went on to be basketball coach for the aforementioned Ministry.
最终成为中国外交部乒乓球冠军，李利用他在南京大学的时间升入了体育省。 作为南京市足球队和篮球队的常客，李还继续担任上述部委的篮球教练。
Sport aside, many of his contemporaries labeled Li as a future leader and one of the brightest stars shining in Nanjing University.
撇开体育不谈，他的许多同时代人将李称为未来的领导者和南京大学最耀眼的明星之一。
Exceptions are often made for people of such potential. For Li’s talents had caught the attention of the Ministry, which went to great lengths as to reserve him a position prior to his graduation. Hence Li was able to say he was one of the rare few to be retained by the Ministry without being either a member of the Communist Party or the Communist Youth League.
对于具有这种潜力的人来说，通常有例外。 因为李的才华引起了该部的注意，该部不遗余力地在他毕业前为他保留了一个职位。 因此，李能够说，他是少数被该部保留而不是共产党或共产主义青年团成员的人之一。
But Li was to really make his mark when the United Nations sat down in 1973 to attempt to ratify some kind of code for an updated version of the concept that was “freedoms of the seas”, which dated from over 200 years prior.
但当联合国于1973年坐下来，试图为200多年前的“海洋自由”概念的更新版本批准某种守则时，李真的要留下了自己的印记。
Over nigh-on the following 10 years, Li put forward China’s position as a major player in the talks to confirm what would become the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
在接下来的10年里，李提出了中国作为会谈主要参与者的地位，以确认《联合国海洋法公约》。
With China back in the UN since 1971, Li was a key player in the negotiations which were to lay down today’s international maritime law. With the law’s influence on global politics, economics and security difficult to overstate, Li’s legacy was secured when he was received twice by Premier, Zhou Enlai, in recognition of his efforts.
自1971年以来，中国重返联合国，李是制定当今国际海事法的谈判的关键角色。 由于法律对全球政治、经济和安全的影响难以夸大，李的遗产得到了保障，因为李总理周恩来两次接待，以表彰他的努力。
Li’s influence in international circles was present in other diplomatic exchanges through the 1970s, particularly China’s ping pong diplomacy and the historic visit to China by then US President, Richard Nixon, in 1972.
李在国际圈子中的影响力出现在20世纪70年代的其他外交交流中，特别是中国的乒乓球外交和时任美国总统理查德·尼克松1972年对中国的历史性访问。
Over a 40 year career, his expertise in the field of border demarcation also saw Li involved in drawing the map of today’s China, through negotiations with India, Myanmar, North Korea and the former Soviet Union.
在40年的职业生涯中，李在边境划界领域的专业知识也通过与印度、缅甸、朝鲜和前苏联的谈判，参与绘制了当今中国的地图。
While Nanjing’s other notable maritime influence, Zheng He, may have put Nanjing on the map in terms of exploration, it was Li who gave the entire nation a voice at the table to agree worldwide standards for countries’ sea borders.
虽然南京的另一个值得注意的海洋影响力，郑和，在探索方面可能将南京放在了地图上，但正是李让整个国家在谈判桌上有发言权，就各国海上边界的全球标准达成一致。
After his death on 6 August, 2017, Li was named as a “pillar of the nation” by Chinese authorities.
李在2017年8月6日去世后，被中国当局命名为「民族支柱」。