Olympic badminton champion Lee Yang (李洋) has reportedly been tapped to lead the new ministry of sport, although neither the Cabinet nor Lee have confirmed the rumors.
TVBS yesterday reported that Lee, who won gold medals in the men’s doubles badminton at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and last year’s Paris Olympics with partner Wang Chi-lin (王齊麟), has been chosen to become the nation’s first sports minister.
The sports ministry is to be inaugurated on Sept. 9.
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
Sports Administration Director Cheng Shih-chung (鄭世忠) would serve as Lee’s deputy, the report said.
A formal announcement is expected after tomorrow, it added.
If appointed, 30-year-old Lee would be the youngest minister in Taiwan’s history.
Lee retired after winning gold last year, and joined National Taiwan Sport University as an associate professor and athletics coach. He also coached players at this year’s national badminton ranking tournament.
Executive Yuan spokeswoman Michelle Lee (李慧芝) said that any changes to the Cabinet would be announced “at an appropriate time.”
Lee said he had “not received any news yet” about the alleged appointment, while Cheng said he had not heard anything from the government and would await news from the Executive Yuan.
Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) did not name a nominee for sports minister, but said that the ministry’s budget has been approved for next year at NT$24.8 billion (US$812.98 million) — a record for sports in Taiwan.
Cho said he hoped Taiwan would host international competitions under its own brand to attract athletes from abroad and stimulate tourism.
The new ministry would promote “sports for all” and encourage athletes to pass on their experience to bolster the nation’s sports industry, he said.
The biggest concern with selecting Lee as minister would be his relative lack of administrative experience, although all the candidates for deputy minister have spent years working under the Sports Administration.
If Lee does become sports minister, he would oversee four elections across major sports associations and Team Taiwan’s participation in the 20th Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan.
Lee would also be involved in communicating with leadership at national sports associations.
In other news, President William Lai (賴清德) during a reception yesterday welcoming home Taiwan’s delegation to the World Games in Chengdu, China, praised Team Taiwan for winning five gold, six silver and four bronze medals — the nation’s best performance at a World Games outside Taiwan.
“With the inauguration of the ministry of sport on National Sports Day, we hope to elevate sports’ organizational level, bring in new structures and policies, inject more resources, incorporate interdisciplinary expertise and create a better environment,” Lai said.
The sports ministry would oversee the National Sports Training Center, the Taiwan Institute of Sports Science and the National Sports Industry Development Center, Lai said.
Additional reporting by Lin Yue-fu and Kayleigh Madjar
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