President Tsai wishes Taiwanese athletes good luck at the Tokyo Olympics

In Taipei on July 12 (CNA), President Tsai Ing-wen () on Monday gave the Taiwan team the Chinese Taipei Olympic ticket and wished the athletes all the best as they prepared to finally leave Tokyo for the multi-race. a global sporting event starting later this month.

At a ceremony held at the Kaohsiung National Sports Center, Tsai urged sports stars to continue to cross new borders and inspire Taiwan and the world at their best.

Thanks to COVID-19, many athletes and coaches attended the ceremony virtually.

According to the President, the Taiwan delegation will leave for Japan next week.

In his speech, Tsai asked the athletes to show the same fighting spirit that the world has shown in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic over the past 18 months.

Meanwhile, the president expressed confidence that the Taiwanese team will do well in Tokyo, as many athletes already have experience at major sporting events, such as the Universiade in Taipei in the summer 2017 and the Asian Games in Jakarta and Palembang, Indonesia.

At the Tokyo Olympics, a 66-member team will participate in 18 events, including shooting, athletics, archery, swimming, gymnastics, table tennis, horseback riding, boxing, rowing, kayaking, weightlifting, judo, tennis, badminton, taekwondo, karate, cycling and golf.

During the ceremony, Tsai presented the Chinese Taipei Olympic flag to Lin Hong-Dow (), who is president of the Chinese Taipei Olympic Committee (CTOC).

The flag has been used since 1981 following a decision by the International Olympic Committee that Taiwan could not compete for the name or flag of the Republic of China (Taiwan) due to Chinese pressure to replace the ROC at the United Nations in 1971.