Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) prayed at a temple in the Songshan District (松山) on Friday for the success of the Deaflympics, which the city will host from Sept. 5 through Sept. 15, promising the deities that he would eat only vegetarian food for two weeks.
The plea is an indication of the pressure the mayor facing, as Taipei is trying to match Kaohsiung’s successful hosting of the World Games last month.
The competition is all the more keen as Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) belongs to the Democratic Progressive Party, while Hau is a member of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT).
The Deaflympics is one of four games regulated by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Its events are similar to those of the Olympic Games and are governed by the same rules.
The 21st Summer Deaflympics in Taipei are expected to bring together about 4,000 athletes and sports officials from 101 countries around the world.
The World Games, on the other hand, are organized by the International World Games Association (IWGA) and feature sports not included in the Olympics.
The World Games in Kaohsiung drew 5,994 athletes and sports officials from 103 countries.
Although the Deaflympics is the highest-level international sports event ever to be hosted by Taiwan, its budget is small compared with that of the Kaohsiung World Games, organizers said.
Emile Sheng (盛治仁), chief executive officer of the organizing committee for the Taipei Deaflympics, said that in the four years between 1995 and 1998, Taipei received only NT$60 million (US$1.8 million) from the Sports Affairs Council to prepare for the Games, compared with the NT$680 million allocated to Kaohsiung for the World Games.
This year, the Sports Affairs Council allocated NT$30 million for the Deaflympics, while NT$840 million was budgeted for the Kaohsiung World Games, Sheng said.
The difference in government financial support puts Taipei at a disadvantage, he said. The city has had to refurbish existing stadiums and venues to stage the competition rather than build brand new facilities like the main stadium for the Kaohsiung World Games, which had a NT$4.79 billion price tag, he said.
Chen’s success in persuading the IWGA to allow President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) to preside over the opening of the World Games was considered a tour de force that brought the country into the limelight abroad and won applause across the country’s political spectrum.
This, however, has brought extra pressure on Hau, who is sure to be excoriated by his political foes and friends alike if he fails to match Chen’s move, despite the IOC practice of excluding Taiwanese heads of state from any prominent role in its Games, on Beijing’s insistence.
Hau said on Thursday that he would invite Ma to open the Deaflympics, but did not explain how he would avoid a boycott by the Chinese team if he did so.
The city residents’ lack of enthusiasm for the Deaflympics is another problem that is threatening to undermine the event. A survey conducted by the city found that only 40 percent of Taipei residents intend to attend the Games.
Hau, who is already plagued by problems over the city’s Maokong Gondola and the Neihu-Muzha MRT line, is pinning his hopes for his reelection next year on the success of the Deaflympics.
Observers have said that while he prays for the best, he may well have to prepare for the worst.
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