Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues.
They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30.
Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020.
Photo: Chang Chia-ming, Taipei Times
Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by Beijing require Chinese to travel through Hong Kong, Macau or another country to attend the Games, and also impose strict checks on issuing permits for Chinese to visit Taiwan.
“Due to these barriers, many Chinese who have already signed up will not be coming,” Lin said.
Originally there were 546 participants from China, but as of this week, only 61 have obtained Chinese travel permits, and only 34 have confirmed attendance, having paid permit fees and registered for the event, as well as having received approval to enter Taiwan, Lin said.
Lin cited reports that about 3,000 participants — foreign nationals and Taiwanese — had signed up, but have requested refunds.
She accused the organizing committee of many issues, including lacking a publicity campaign, and called on Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) to take responsibility.
“The registration process is a mess, while the changing timetable and abrupt venue changes have left people in the dark without updated information, and unable to register or change to other events,” Taipei City Councilor Yen Juo-fang (顏若芳) said.
Moreover, many Taiwanese are not aware of the Games, Yen added.
The total price tag for the Games came to NT$1.881 billion (US$57.8 million), with the Taipei City Government footing half of the bill, the central government 40 percent, and 10 percent from the New Taipei City Government.
More than 30,000 participants were expected to participate, half from abroad, Yen said.
However, registration has fallen far short of the target, as only 6,550 foreign nationals had completed registration, according to figures this week, as well as 19,400 from within Taiwan, of which 11,366 are Taipei or New Taipei City residents, Yen said.
Originally conceived as an open competition for adults aged 30 or older, the registration fee is NT$3,600 for Taiwanese and NT$7,500 for foreign nationals, which allows participants to sign up for seven events in three major sporting categories, according to official information.
However, Taipei city councilors have criticized the pricing as too high for an open sporting event, which deters most people from taking part.
Games spokesperson Kuo Yin-lan (郭音蘭) said that most cancelations were due to changes to personal travel, injuries or team disbandment, while some made changes because events were full.
There were also “adjustments” to move venues due to safety concerns and other unforeseen circumstances, Kuo added.
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