Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) and New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) suited up to compete at the World Masters Games yesterday, while participants continued to complain of organization issues, media said yesterday.
Chiang had a good run in recreational squash, winning two matches on Wednesday in the 40+ singles, but bowed out yesterday when his opponent beat him 3-1.
Hou played in recreational table tennis in the 60+ singles, but was eliminated in the preliminary round, with one win and two losses. The win was due to his opponent failing to show up.
Photo: CNA
Meanwhile, management issues continued to plague the Games, with competitors complaining about the venues and facilities, schedule confusions, missing their events and erroneous information from officials. Some people participating in the orienteering competition yesterday posted on social media that before the event, competitors had to squat and crawl on the ground to find their map.
“We were at the check-in location to receive materials and get ready, then 10 minutes before we were to collect the orienteering map, the officials just dumped everything on the ground. Competitors had to scramble to search for the map with their assigned number,” one participant wrote, attaching photos.
“It was awful to see, like a group of athletes picking through trash. There were more than 500 maps, and you had no idea which one has your assigned number. Anything is better than just throwing everything on the ground for people to search through,” he wrote.
Photo: CNA
Triathlon participants also complained, saying that officials had changed the check-in times on its Web site, but participants had already received their kits through the mail, which had different schedules.
The sprint distance triathlon is to take place tomorrow and the full race on Sunday in Dongshan Township (冬山) in Yilan County, so most competitors had to arrange transportation to arrive in time for the check-in, one person said.
“For the Saturday race, we had to arrive on Friday. According to the kit we received, the latest time for check-in was 8pm, during which you were to collect the patch with your assigned number, a chip to monitor your time and a swimming cap. However, we had no idea that the cut-off time had been changed to 6pm,” he wrote.
Photo: CNA
“The race time for Saturday had also been changed. If people do not check the Web site, they would not be able to take part in the competition,” he added.
Foreign competitors have also complained about a lack of interpreters, with organizers saying that they are short on volunteers who can speak foreign languages, which has led to some being unable to participate in their events, social media posts showed.
Many participants also said there was a lack in updated information and long delays.
Some said when they arrived at venues, they had to wait for a very long time, as officials were still working through the check-in procedures.
Others said that although they already underwent the check-in process and were dressed for their competitions, they had to wait many hours, with some people not being able to compete at all.
Checks found that problems with the sound system and likely erroneous name pronunciation were the reasons that some athletes missed their call.
Palauan President Surangel Whipps Jr arrived in Taiwan last night to kick off his first visit to the country since beginning his second term earlier this year. After arriving at Taoyuan International Airport at around 6:30 pm, Whipps and his delegation were welcomed by Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍). Speaking to gathered media, the Palauan leader said he was excited and honored to be back in Taiwan on his first state visit to Taiwan since he was sworn in this January. Among those traveling with Whipps is Minister of State Gustav N. Aitaro, Public Infrastructure
President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday thanked Palau for its continued support of Taiwan's international participation, as Taipei was once again excluded from the World Health Assembly (WHA) currently taking place in Switzerland. "Palau has never stopped voicing support for Taiwan" in the UN General Assembly, the WHO and other UN-affiliated agencies, Lai said during a bilateral meeting with visiting Palau President Surangel Whipps Jr. "We have been profoundly touched by these endorsements," Lai said, praising the Pacific island nation's firm support as "courageous." Lai's remarks came as Taiwan was excluded for the ninth consecutive year from the WHA, which is being held in
RESOLUTIONS DEBATE: Taiwan’s allies said that UN and WHA resolutions cited by China and other nations ‘do not determine Taiwan’s participation in WHO activities’ A proposal to invite Taiwan to this year’s World Health Assembly (WHA) was rejected on Monday, resulting in Taipei’s absence from the annual meeting for a ninth consecutive year, although partners spoke up for Taiwan’s participation at the first day of the meeting. The first agenda item after the opening was a “two-on-two debate” on a proposal to invite Taiwan to participate at the WHA as an observer. Similar to previous years, two countries made statements in favor of the proposal, while two others expressed their opposition. Philippine Secretary of Health Teodoro Herbosa, president of the 78th WHA, accepted the WHA General Committee’s
At least three people died and more than a dozen were injured yesterday afternoon when a vehicle struck a group of pedestrians in New Taipei City’s Sansia District (三峽). The incident happened at about 4pm when a car rammed into pedestrians at an intersection near Bei Da Elementary School. Witnesses said the sedan, being driven at a high speed, ran a red light, knocking scooters out of the way and hitting students crossing the road before careening into a median near the intersection of Guocheng and Guoguang streets. The incident resulted in three deaths and 13 injuries, including the driver, a 78-year-old man
RSS