The first person to cast doubts on Yi's age is the American Brooke Larmer, a writer for TIME based in China. In his introduction of Yi back in 2003 (the first English article devoted to Yi), he wrote:
http://www.time.com/time/covers/1101030908/xyi.html
"So when might Yi Jianlian don an NBA uniform? That depends on the biggest mystery of all: his age. The national junior-team roster says Yi was born on Oct. 27, 1987, which would make him just 15 —and not eligible to enter the NBA draft independently as an international player until 2009. Several well-placed Chinese basketball experts say he is 17 or 18. Dates are manipulated, they claim, to give Yi more years of eligibility for junior competitions, which China counts on to increase its international prestige. (Age shaving is endemic in international junior competitions. It even affected the Clippers' Wang Zhizhi, who had NBA teams scrambling to verify his true age to make sure he was old enough for the draft.) Yi and his parents both say on the record that he was born in 1987. But when pressed on the issue, Yi turns away and fills the room with an uncomfortable silence, and his father smiles blankly without responding. "
17 or 18 years old, or 2, 3 years older than listed, would render birth dates of 1984 or 1985. Later, Larmer wrote the following in his book "Operation Yao Ming" (2005):
"Yi Jianlian's prospects were even murkier, for they hinged, in part, on the biggest mystery of all: his age. The national team roster listed Yi's birthdate as October 27, 1987, a date that Chinese basketball experts said was deliberately falsified to give him more years of eligibility for junior competitions. Insiders say Yi was actually born in 1984. The practice of "age-shaving" had haunted Wang Zhizhi, and now, nearly a decade later, it hovered over Yi, who, like Wang, presumably had no choice in the matter. If the 6'11'' forward turned eighteen in October 2005, as the roster claimed, he would be considered one of the more enticing young prospects in the world. If he turned twenty-one, then his development, while impressive, lagged behind Yao and Wang. Even so, he would be automatically eligible to enter the NBA draft in 2006.
"Nobody involved in Chinese basketball wanted to talk about Yi's age controversy, least of Yi himself. His Guangdong coach declined to confirm or deny the age fraud, saying only that the 1987 birth date appeared on Yi's official hukou, or residency permit. His parents both said publicly that he was born in 1987, but when pressed on the issue, his father smiled blankly without responding. Asked the same question in a private dinner in August 2003, Yi himself turned away and gazed at the patterned carpeting on the floor, filling the room with an uncomfortable silence. He snapped back to attention, however, when his out-of-town visitor explained the biggest consequence of the age manipulation: "Did you know that, according to NBA rules, you won't be eligible to enter the NBA draft without official permission until 2009?"
Yi shook his head forlornly.
"That's a long time," he said. He couldn't afford to say any more.
[....]
Then this photo was discovered online.
http://blog.luohuedu.net/Images/Pictures/3844/24227/o_20070112090503.jpg
It shouldn't be too hard to guess who Yi is in the picture. The Chinese characters below read: "Shenzhen City Xinxiu Elementary School Graduation Class of '97, Grade 6, Group 3, Teachers & Students Commemorative Photo".
By Chinese law, any child need to be at least 6 years old to enter 1st grade in September. If Yi indeed graduated in 1997 in 6th grade, then he had to enter school in 1991, less than 4 years old if he were born in October 27, 1987 as listed, something highly improbable in a populous city like Shenzhen City. Yi took part of the GaoKao (or China's National College Entrance Exam) in 2003. Most Chinese students take it after graduating from high school, usually around 18 years old.
Here is another interesting piece of evidence (
http://sports.163.com/07/0511/23/3E8GV6DF00051CA1.html link in Chinese) In this interview, Yi's parents revealed that they moved from Heshan City, where the Guangdong handball teams were located (Both parents were former players) to Shenzhen City in 1983 (father) and 1985 (mother) respectively. Yi has always been listed as being born in Heshan (
http://delegation.olympic.cn/yundongyuan/yundongyuan-e.php?Array=969)while growing up in Shenzhen.
