Chinese Taipei Olympic Committee vice president Steven Chen on Tuesday apologized after weightlifter Lin Tzu-chi (林子琦) was suspended because of an abnormal doping test, costing the nation a strong medal chance.
Lin was considered a gold-medal contender in the women’s 63kg division on Tuesday, but her absence opened the way for her main rival, Deng Wei (鄧薇) of China, to win the gold with a record-breaking combined total of 262kg.
The previous record, 261kgs, was set by Lin at the Asian Games in 2014, but her performance has slipped since then. She placed sixth at the World Weightlifting Championships in November last year, with a combined lift of 238kgs.
Photo: Liao Yu-wei, Taipei Times
“As the leader of Taiwan’s Olympics delegation, I take full responsibility for a failure to win a medal in the weightlifting event,” Chen said. “We disappointed everyone in Taiwan.”
The delegation decided to pull Lin from the competition after receiving a report on Friday last week that indicated abnormalities in a doping test.
“Taiwan always follows the highest standards in doping tests to ensure that competition is fair and protect athletes’ rights,” Chen said. “So we have decided to temporarily suspend Lin Tzu-chi from competition and make it clear to everyone that there is no room for compromise on doping.”
Chen said that the decision was based on guidance from the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).
Chen quoted weightlifting team coach Tsai Wen-yi (蔡溫義) as saying he was saddened by news of the test results.
It was not the first time Lin failed a doping test. She tested positive for taking a banned substance before the 2010 Asian Games, and while she insisted she had mistakenly taken an illegal drug, she was suspended for two years.
Sports Administration Director-General Ho Jow-fei (何卓飛), who is in Rio de Janeiro, also expressed regret over the situation.
Ho said Lin was one of the athletes under close watch by the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) and any tests involving her drew attention from the federation.
He said the test was done in Taiwan before the Olympic Games and sent to Japan for testing.
The results came back on Friday and Japan sent a copy to the IWF, he said, adding that there are test results of other athletes that have yet to arrive.
“WADA requires that if an abnormal test is confirmed, then the athlete must be temporarily suspended from competition,” Ho said.
“We had to make this decision, as regrettable as it is. We also call on athletes to be careful in what they use,” Ho added.
The test result was not immediately made public to prevent it from affecting the morale of Hsu Shu-ching (許淑淨) and Kuo Hsing-chun (郭婞淳) in their weightlifting events on Sunday and Monday respectively, Chinese-language media said.
The delegation said Lin’s suspension would make it harder for Taiwanese athletes to achieve the goal set by the Sports Administration of three golds, two silvers and bronze for the Rio Games.
At press time last night, Taiwan had won three medals: a gold and a bronze in women’s weightlifting and a bronze medal in the women’s team event in archery.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique