Minister of Sports Lee Yang (李洋) attended an Asian Games flag-raising ceremony in Japan yesterday after an hour-long delay amid a dispute over an alleged attempt to bar him from the event.
The ceremony, held ahead of the opening of the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, was held at 1:30pm, with Taiwan, Timor-Leste, North Korea, India and Palestine among the delegations.
However, after the delegations entered the venue, the ceremony did not begin as scheduled.
Photo: CNA
Japanese officials asked the groups to return to a waiting area without giving a clear reason for the delay.
Minister Without Portfolio Wu Cheng-wen (吳誠文), who was also at the event, told Taiwanese media that the Olympic Council of Asia had issued an “order” barring Lee from the ceremony.
Wu said he demanded to see the order, but officials at the venue were unable to produce it.
Photo: CNA
It remains unclear whether an order existed.
Lee and the other members of the Taiwan delegation ultimately returned to the venue and took part in the ceremony.
Lee later told media that “we are doing our best to safeguard our rights and do not want to be subjected to any form of suppression.”
Taiwan’s Olympic committee had completed the required application process and he did not know why the organizing committee in Japan had apparently received instructions from the Asian council to exclude him, Lee said.
“We hope to exercise our rights, and everything we do is reasonable and evidence-based,” he said. “After our final discussions with the organizers, we were ultimately able to enter the venue and take part in the ceremony.”
The Asian Games opening ceremony is scheduled for today, with Lee calling on the public to follow the Games.
“We also hope more Taiwanese athletes can perform at their best and give their all at the Games, so that Taiwan can be more visible on the international stage,” he added.
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