Marines Cheng Chih-ya (
"They are now fully qualified frogmen. They have proved it with their remarkable performances during training, even better than some of their male counterparts," said Lieutenant Colonel Ku Chang-chih (
Ku said that he was very impressed by privates Cheng and Hsu during training, since both of them performed well in the 50m swim with one breath and the 26km run, doing better than everybody else in the program.
PHOTO: CHANG CHUNG-YI, TAIPEI TIMES
"They fully deserve all the plaudits," Ku said.
Apart from Cheng and Hsu, a total of 118 other marines, including ranks from privates to lieutenant colonel, volunteered for the training program. Only 44 of the volunteers finished, however, graduating as qualified frogmen.
The 123rd Amphibious Training Program was an intensive nine-week program, including physical training, military combat training and underwater demolition training. In the middle of the program, trainees have to endure a "three-day-stay-awake" exercise that sees them continue the physical challenges at sea and on land without sleep for three consecutive days.
All 44 marines were officially certified as frogmen yesterday morning after completing the "Road to Heaven" challenge, which involves doing various tough exercises along a 50m long path that is littered with coral and rocks.
"I just wanted to challenge myself and prove to everyone that I could do it, and I did," Hsu said.
Cheng had already made the front pages in August last year when she gave up a place on the national swim team and the chance to be an elementary school teacher to join the Marines.
"You always have chances to prove yourself and challenge yourself as a Marine. That is something I like about it," Cheng said.
Alain Robert, known as the "French Spider-Man," praised Alex Honnold as exceptionally well-prepared after the US climber completed a free solo ascent of Taipei 101 yesterday. Robert said Honnold's ascent of the 508m-tall skyscraper in just more than one-and-a-half hours without using safety ropes or equipment was a remarkable achievement. "This is my life," he said in an interview conducted in French, adding that he liked the feeling of being "on the edge of danger." The 63-year-old Frenchman climbed Taipei 101 using ropes in December 2004, taking about four hours to reach the top. On a one-to-10 scale of difficulty, Robert said Taipei 101
Nipah virus infection is to be officially listed as a category 5 notifiable infectious disease in Taiwan in March, while clinical treatment guidelines are being formulated, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. With Nipah infections being reported in other countries and considering its relatively high fatality rate, the centers on Jan. 16 announced that it would be listed as a notifiable infectious disease to bolster the nation’s systematic early warning system and increase public awareness, the CDC said. Bangladesh reported four fatal cases last year in separate districts, with three linked to raw date palm sap consumption, CDC Epidemic Intelligence
US climber Alex Honnold left Taiwan this morning a day after completing a free-solo ascent of Taipei 101, a feat that drew cheers from onlookers and gained widespread international attention. Honnold yesterday scaled the 101-story skyscraper without a rope or safety harness. The climb — the highest urban free-solo ascent ever attempted — took just more than 90 minutes and was streamed live on Netflix. It was covered by major international news outlets including CNN, the New York Times, the Guardian and the Wall Street Journal. As Honnold prepared to leave Taiwan today, he attracted a crowd when he and his wife, Sanni,
Taiwanese and US defense groups are collaborating to introduce deployable, semi-autonomous manufacturing systems for drones and components in a boost to the nation’s supply chain resilience. Taiwan’s G-Tech Optroelectronics Corp subsidiary GTOC and the US’ Aerkomm Inc on Friday announced an agreement with fellow US-based Firestorm Lab to adopt the latter’s xCell, a technology featuring 3D printers fitted in 6.1m container units. The systems enable aerial platforms and parts to be produced in high volumes from dispersed nodes capable of rapid redeployment, to minimize the risk of enemy strikes and to meet field requirements, they said. Firestorm chief technology officer Ian Muceus said
RSS