According to the Wall Street Journal, Wan Jianlin, who is one of the richest men in China, could buy Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO) and their races. His comany Dalian Wanda Group wants to step into cycling. Some month ago, this group already tried to buy RCS Sport.

"Wanda is also interested in potentially buying Amaury Sport Organisation, people familiar with Wanda’s plans said. They cautioned that the Tour de France deal isn’t as advanced and discussions remained at early stages", the journal explained.

Jianlin, who has an estimated fortune of almost $30 billion, wants to develop in the sports industry. "Wanda has a very high expectation for the development and prospects of the sports industry. The significance of establishing Wanda Sports is not only to integrate Wanda’s interests in sports, but also to truly expand and strengthen Wanda’s businesses in the industry, while at the same time grasping the rapidly growing opportunities in the Chinese sports market. We want to truly impact the development of sport around the world.”

His investment began with the purchase of Infront Sports & Media and the World Triathlon Corporation. The German one-day Vattenfall Cyclassics race now falls under that umbrella.

"Wang wants these businesses to promote his real estate and tourism businesses," a Chinese journalist told VeloNews. "He bought Ironman, with it he gets people to the races and to his hotels, and maybe to buy a home. China has a huge growing middle class, with money for triathlons and tourism."