BEIJING - Chinese basketball icon Yao Ming joined thousands of fans Monday in an online celebration to mark the 129th anniversary of the game's invention.

The CBA also hopes to raise funds and basketball equipment for three rural primary schools in Dai county, north China's Shanxi province

ALSO READ: Yao Ming: 3 plans in place for remainder of CBA season

The event, titled Collecting Yao's Pass, was co-organized by the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) and Tiktok. It aims to promote the sport that Canadian school teacher James Naismith invented in December 1891.

READ MORE: Yao Ming on CBA restart: 'Everything is just beginning'

The CBA also hopes to raise funds and basketball equipment for three rural primary schools in Dai county, north China's Shanxi province.

Within 24 hours, Yao's video on the Tiktok platform had received around one million views and 30,000 replies.