|
Taiwan 2002 |
 |
 |
Sports and Recreation |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
International CompetitionSince the 1984 Olympics, the Republic of China has competed in international competitions under the banner of "Chinese Taipei."From July 2000 to June 2001, 1,191 ROC athletes participated in international tournaments and competitions. Among them, 649 athletes attended 92 international championships in 40 sports. In total, ROC athletes took home 89 gold, 86 silver, and 62 bronze medals from these events. The 2001 World University Games were held in Beijing, China, between August 21 and September 1, with 167 countries participating. The ROC delegation had 106 athletes competing in eight areas: tennis, table tennis, track and field, gymnastics, swimming, basketball, volleyball, and judo. They returned to Taipei with three silver and five bronze medals.
Other International ChampionshipsIn the area of international sports exchanges, the ROC took part in the III Open Summer Games "Olympic Hopes" held May 11-13, 2001, in Bulgaria. ROC athletes participated in five areas of competition, including swimming, and won 21 gold, 17 silver, and 6 bronze medals.Between May 18 and May 28, 2001, the ROC delegation participated in the Third East Asian Games held in Osaka, Japan, winning 6 gold, 16 silver, and 31 bronze medals. Overall, the ROC team ranked fifth, after Japan, the Chinese mainland, South Korea, and Kazakhstan. ROC athletes also competed in several events sponsored by the International School Sport Federation in 2001, including swimming, basketball, track and field, and gymnastics. They returned with a gold medal in men's group competition swimming, a silver medal in women's group competition swimming, a silver medal in gymnastics for men's floor, a bronze medal in gymnastics for men's horse-vaulting, and a bronze medal in men's group competition track and field. Overall, the ROC delegation ranked fifth of all competing teams. The 10th World Police and Fire Games were held in Indiana, USA, in July 2001. Competition areas included judo, track and field, billiards, bowling, swimming, tennis, and badminton. The 36 ROC athletes participating won 16 gold, 10 silver, and 10 bronze medals. The ROC delegation participated in the Fourth Taekwondo Opens held in the United Kingdom in July, winning 19 gold, 9 silver, and 8 bronze medals. The ROC team won first place overall out of the 12 countries participating. Following its success in the 2001 Taipei International Dragon Boat Race Championship held in June, the Taipei Physical Education College scored a victory at the 2001 Long Beach World Cup Dragon Boat Championships in Los Angeles. Rowing under the title of the Chunghua team, the group garnered its title at 2 minutes 5.12 seconds, defeating 72 contestants from the United States, the Chinese mainland, the Philippines, and Canada. Four ROC billiard players went to Connecticut, USA, to compete in the 2001 International Challenge of Champions in July. Chao Feng-pang from the ROC won the 2001 WPA World Pool Champion and US$50,000. During the Sixth World Games held in Akita, Japan, between August 16 and August 26, the ROC delegation of 65 athletes won three gold, three silver, and five bronze medals, placing the ROC team in 14th place out of 92 countries.
Dragon Boat RacingDragon boat racing originally started out as a festival to commemorate the death of the patriotic poet Chu Yuan 屈原, who committed suicide on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month in 277 B.C. (see Chinese Festivals in Tourism). Today, dragon boat racing is one of the most popular sports worldwide.In June 2001, 12 counties and cities held 15 dragon boat races and related activities during the Dragon Boat Festival. In addition, the international dragon boat races held in Taipei attracted 116 local and foreign teams between June 23 and June 25, 2001. After three days of competition, the Taipei Physical Educational College won both men's and women's first place.
Best viewed with Netscape 4.x or IE 5.x (medium font) at 800 x 600 True Color (32 bit) resolution
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||