Taekwondo athlete Yang Shu-chun (楊淑君), who was disqualified during a match at the Asian Games in Guangzhou last month, was banned from competition for three months in a ruling released yesterday by the World Taekwondo Federation (WTF).
Yang’s coach Liu Tsung-ta (劉聰達) was suspended for one year and eight months, the federation said, while the Chinese Taipei Taewondo Association was fined US$50,000 because Yang and Liu protested the decision ringside at the Asiad on Nov. 17.
A tearful Yang said she felt her coach and the association were being punished because of her.
“The coach gave us athletes so much and yet was penalized,” Yang said in Taipei last night.
However, a three-month suspension is basically a slap on the wrist because there are no major international taekwondo events scheduled for the next three months.
Yang was disqualified for violating the rules by wearing extra electronic sensors in her socks to score more points. She was leading her opponent 9-0 when she was disqualified, and a dumbfounded Yang refused to leave the competitive arena for an extended period of time despite requests from officials to do so.
Video replays of the match showed Yang had removed the two sensors before the bout began. Inconsistent explanations from taekwondo officials about Yang’s disqualification had raised questions about the legitimacy of the dismissal.
Yang, Liu, her other coach Liu Ching-wen (劉慶文) and Chinese Taipei Taekwondo Association president Chen Chien-ping (陳建平) flew to South Korea on Friday to attend the WTF’s disciplinary committee hearing on Saturday.
The committee, made up of Egyptian, Israeli and Turkish officials, reviewed the decision to disqualify Yang and her protest.
Sports Affairs Council Minister Tai Hsia-ling (戴遐齡) said last night the council would discuss the matter with its lawyers to determine whether it would be possible to handle Yang’s case and that of her coach separately.
The committee had previously lodged a protest with the Olympic Council of Asia over Yang’s case and filed an appeal with the international Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY SHELLEY SHAN
NEXT GENERATION: The four plants in the Central Taiwan Science Park, designated Fab 25, would consist of four 1.4-nanometer wafer manufacturing plants, TSMC said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) plans to begin construction of four new plants later this year, with the aim to officially launch production of 2-nanometer semiconductor wafers by late 2028, Central Taiwan Science Park Bureau director-general Hsu Maw-shin (許茂新) said. Hsu made the announcement at an event on Friday evening celebrating the Central Taiwan Science Park’s 22nd anniversary. The second phase of the park’s expansion would commence with the initial construction of water detention ponds and other structures aimed at soil and water conservation, Hsu said. TSMC has officially leased the land, with the Central Taiwan Science Park having handed over the
AUKUS: The Australian Ambassador to the US said his country is working with the Pentagon and he is confident that submarine issues will be resolved Australian Ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd on Friday said that if Taiwan were to fall to China’s occupation, it would unleash China’s military capacities and capabilities more broadly. He also said his country is working with the Pentagon on the US Department of Defense’s review of the AUKUS submarine project and is confident that all issues raised will be resolved. Rudd, who served as Australian prime minister from 2007 to 2010 and for three months in 2013, made the remarks at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado and stressed the longstanding US-Australia alliance and his close relationship with the US Undersecretary
‘WORLD WAR III’: Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene said the aid would inflame tensions, but her amendment was rejected 421 votes against six The US House of Representatives on Friday passed the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for fiscal 2026, which includes US$500 million for Taiwan. The bill, which totals US$831.5 billion in discretionary spending, passed in a 221-209 vote. According to the bill, the funds for Taiwan would be administered by the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency and would remain available through Sept. 30, 2027, for the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative. The legislation authorizes the US Secretary of Defense, with the agreement of the US Secretary of State, to use the funds to assist Taiwan in procuring defense articles and services, and military training. Republican Representative
TAIWAN IS TAIWAN: US Representative Tom Tiffany said the amendment was not controversial, as ‘Taiwan is not — nor has it ever been — part of Communist China’ The US House of Representatives on Friday passed an amendment banning the US Department of Defense from creating, buying or displaying any map that shows Taiwan as part of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The “Honest Maps” amendment was approved in a voice vote on Friday as part of the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for the 2026 fiscal year. The amendment prohibits using any funds from the act to create, buy or display maps that show Taiwan, Kinmen, Matsu, Penghu, Wuciou (烏坵), Green Island (綠島) or Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼) as part of the PRC. The act includes US$831.5 billion in