Taiwanese golfer Yu Chun-an won a gold medal in the men’s individual division at the Asian Youth Games in Nanjing, China, yesterday, Taiwan’s second gold at the international sports meeting.
Yu, who celebrated his 15th birthday earlier in the month, won the three-round tournament with a 13-under score of 203, defeating silver medalist Manu Gandas of India by two strokes.
The Taiwanese player opened a five-shot lead after the first round with an eight-under 64 and never relinquished it over the final two days.
Photo: CNA
His lead narrowed to three strokes after an inconsistent second-round 70, in which he made eight birdies, but also had two double-bogeys and two bogeys over his last nine holes of the day.
However, Yu distanced himself from his rivals early in the final round with four birdies on the front nine, followed by bogeys on the 10th and 17th sandwiched around a birdie on the 14th.
Gandas, an Indian competing as an “independent Olympic athlete” because of India’s suspension from the Olympic movement in December last year for electing corruption-tainted officials to the Indian Olympic Association, took silver.
Thailand’s Danthai Boonma took bronze with a three-day total of 207.
Yu, who will begin high school next month, said he was happy to win the gold medal, and hoped to share the joy with his family and coach.
He was especially grateful to his father, even if they have had their share of run-ins because of differences in philosophy.
“My father made sure I had good fundamentals,” Yu said of his father, a former professional golfer who now runs a course in Taoyuan County. “We use golf to bond.”
Looking to the future, Yu said he hopes to play on the PGA Tour in the US in a few years’ time.
Team Taiwan won their first gold medal at this year’s Games, which are open to athletes born in 1997 or later, in the men’s javelin on Monday.
Hong Kong-based cricket team Hung See this weekend found success in their matches in Taiwan, even if none of the results went their way. Hung See played the Chairman’s XI on Saturday morning, the Daredevils that afternoon and PCCT yesterday, with all three home teams winning. The team for Chinese players at the Happy Valley-based Craigengower Cricket Club sends teams on tour to “spread the game of cricket.” This weekend was Hung See’s second trip to Taiwan after visiting Tainan in 2016. “The club has been traveling to all parts of the world since 1982 and the annual tradition continues [with the Taiwan
The San Francisco Giants signed 18-year-old Taiwanese pitcher Yang Nien-hsi (陽念希) to a contract worth a total of US$500,000 (NT $16.39 million). At a press event in Taipei on Wednesday, Jan. 22, the Giants’ Pacific Rim Area scout Evan Hsueh (薛奕煌) presented Yang with a Giants jersey to celebrate the signing. The deal consisted of a contract worth US$450,000 plus a US$50,000 scholarship bonus. Yang, who stands at 188 centimeters tall and weighs 85 kilograms, is of Indigenous Amis descent. With his fastest pitch clocking in at 150 kilometers per hour, Yang had been on Hsueh’s radar since playing in the HuaNan Cup
Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei and partner Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia yesterday advanced to the women’s doubles final at the Australian Open after defeating New Zealand’s Erin Routliffe and Gabriela Dabrowski of Canada 7-6 (7/3), 3-6, 6-3 in their semi-final. Hsieh has won nine Grand Slam doubles titles and has a shot at a 10th tomorrow, when the Latvian-Taiwanese duo are to play Taylor Townsend of the US and Katerina Siniakova of the Czech Republic in the championship match at the A$96.5 million (US$61 million) outdoor hard court tournament at Melbourne Park. Townsend and Siniakova eliminated Russian pair Diana Shnaider and Mirra Andreeva 6-7
Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei yesterday advanced to the semi-finals of the women’s doubles at the Australian Open, while Coco Gauff’s dreams of a first women’s singles title in Melbourne were crushed in the quarter-finals by Paula Badosa. World No. 2 Alexander Zverev was ruffled by a stray feather in his men’s singles quarter-final, but he refocused to beat 12th seed Tommy Paul and reach the semi-finals. Third seeds Hsieh and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia defeated Elena-Gabriela Ruse of Romania and Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine 6-2, 5-7, 7-5 in 2 hours, 20 minutes to advance the semi-finals. Hsieh and Ostapenko converted eight of 14 break
RSS