Taiwanese athletes have so far netted one silver medal and one bronze medal in the Paralympic Games in Paris. Political Deputy Minister of Education Chang Liao Wan-chien (張廖萬堅), who made a special trip to France on Sunday, encouraged Taiwanese people to support their athletes in the Games.
Para-taekwondo practitioner Xiao Xiang-wen (蕭翔文) won bronze in the 58kg category, while Tian Shiau-wen (田曉雯) and Lin Tzu-Yu (林姿妤) won silver in women’s doubles in para table tennis. With these two medals, Taiwan’s team is on track to outperform its record from the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics. Taiwanese para-athletes are also set to compete in singles table tennis, archery, powerlifting, and judo events.
Although not all Taiwanese para-athletes will likely be able to win medals this year, Chang Liao said that many of them are able to achieve new personal bests during the competition. Notably, para-badminton player Hu Guang-chiou (胡光秋) advanced to the top eight of the wheelchair women’s singles.
Chang Liao confirmed that the arrangements for this year’s Paralympics are modeled after the traditional Olympics Games in Paris, with physical therapy clinics, sports centers, meals, and apartments provided by the Education Ministry’s Sports Administration. During this trip, he has also taken the opportunity to hold talks with International Paralympic Committee President Andrew Parsons in an effort to deepen the relationship between Taiwan and international sports organizations.