The Sports Administration has stressed that Olympic gold medalist Lin Yu-ting (林郁婷) is a woman in response to false claims by US President Donald Trump about her sex and eligibility to compete.
Hung Chih-chang (洪志昌), deputy director-general of the Sports Administration, reiterated on Thursday that Lin was born female and has always competed in women’s competitions, including during the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.
He added that her sex is a separate issue from that of transgender individuals competing in sports events.
Photo: CNA
“The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has also firmly affirmed its support on this issue. We hope the public will spread accurate information and help protect athletes from being subjected to abuse,” he said.
Hung’s statement came after Trump referred to Lin, alongside Imane Khelif of Algeria, while signing his latest executive order titled “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports” on Wednesday.
“Who could forget last year’s Paris Olympics, where a male boxer stole the women’s gold medal after brutalizing his female opponent so viciously that she had to forfeit just after 46 seconds,” Trump said in reference to Khelif, who won the women’s 66-kg category.
“Actually, there were two individuals who transitioned, and both convincingly won gold medals,” he added, referring to Khelif and Lin, disregarding the fact that the two have never “transitioned” and were both born female.
Regardless of Trump’s stance, it is uncertain if Lin, or any boxer, will compete in Los Angeles because the sport has not yet been included in the 2028 program due to a lack of a governing body recognized by the IOC.
The committee suspended the International Boxing Association (IBA) in 2019 and withdrew recognition in 2023, with interim management handling boxing events in Tokyo and Paris. It has indicated that boxing may not return to the Summer Games in 2028 without a credible, universally recognized governing body.
World Boxing, which Taiwan joined after the Paris Games, is expected to succeed the IBA.
Mauricio Sulaiman, president of the World Boxing Council, recently declared that “the organization has met the necessary requirements to oversee competitions and secure the future of amateur boxing.”
According to InsideTheGames, the IOC is likely to announce its decision on recognizing a governing body by March.
Temperatures in northern Taiwan are forecast to reach as high as 30°C today, as an ongoing northeasterly seasonal wind system weakens, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said yesterday that with the seasonal wind system weakening, warmer easterly winds would boost the temperature today. Daytime temperatures in northern Taiwan and Yilan County are expected to range from 28°C to 30°C today, up about 3°C from yesterday, Tseng said. According to the CWA, temperature highs in central and southern Taiwan could stay stable. However, the weather is expected to turn cooler starting tonight as the northeasterly wind system strengthens again
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
COOLING OFF: Temperatures are expected to fall to lows of about 20°C on Sunday and possibly 18°C to 19°C next week, following a wave of northeasterly winds on Friday The Central Weather Administration (CWA) on Sunday forecast more rain and cooler temperatures for northern Taiwan this week, with the mercury dropping to lows of 18°C, as another wave of northeasterly winds sweeps across the country. The current northeasterly winds would continue to affect Taiwan through today, with precipitation peaking today, bringing increased rainfall to windward areas, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said. The weather system would weaken slightly tomorrow before another, stronger wave arrives on Friday, lasting into next week, Liu said. From yesterday to today, northern Taiwan can expect cool, wet weather, with lows of 22°C to 23°C in most areas,
Taiwan sweltered through its hottest October on record, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, the latest in a string of global temperature records. The main island endured its highest average temperature since 1950, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng said. Temperatures the world over have soared in recent years as human-induced climate change contributes to ever more erratic weather patterns. Taiwan’s average temperature was 27.381°C as of Thursday, Liu said. Liu said the average could slip 0.1°C by the end of yesterday, but it would still be higher than the previous record of 27.009°C in 2016. "The temperature only started lowering around Oct. 18 or 19