China, playing in their first Olympic baseball competition, upstaged Taiwan 8-7 yesterday in a game that went into extra innings and stopped work in Taipei as incredulous fans watched events unfold on television.
After the game, Taiwanese coach Hung Yi-chung (洪一中) attended the press conference alone, saying that the coaching team would take full responsibility.
“Loss is loss,” Hung said, adding that most players had performed well, but that the relief pitcher had been too cautious.
PHOTO: WANG YI-SUNG, TAIPEI TIMES
With the overtime in the game against Japan, Hung had been worried that the team wouldn’t get enough rest before the game against China. He asked to have the match against China postponed, but the request was rejected.
One of the players, Shih Chih-wei (石志偉), said the team had not had enough rest after Thursday night’s game, but that it was not an excuse for the defeat.
As for the new system of installing runners on the first and second bases in the 11th inning, Hung said that teams were unaccustomed to it and it is somewhat unfair to the teams that bat first.
PHOTO: WANG YI-SUNG, TAIPEI TIMES
“It’s just like in history,” said Mao Ai-fen, a government employee in Keelung. “Last night we lost to [former colonial power] Japan and today we lost to the communist bandits.”
A man surnamed Huang, 50, said as he watched the action on television in Taipei: “They should all go jump in the sea. This is the end for the Taiwan team.”
In Beijing, fans from both sides waved plastic batons and cheered their teams from different pockets of the crowd. They behaved respectfully, even cheering for one another when catchable foul balls went into the stands.
The coach of China’s team, Jim Lefebvre, also attended the press conference with three Chinese players, saying it was a significant victory for Chinese baseball.
Separately, former Taiwanese coach Lin Hua-wei (林華韋) said he had once predicted China would eventually beat Taiwan in baseball, “but I didn’t really expect it to happen right here, right now.”
Also See: Olympic STORIES
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
RSS