National Middle School Athletic Games postponed amid COVID surge in Hualien

Amid a sharp rise of COVID cases in Hualien, the majority of events in the National Middle School Athletic Games have been postponed. The games had been originally scheduled to kick off on Saturday in the east coast city. Six of the sports competitions including tennis and archery will go ahead as scheduled. But for all other athletes, Friday was a day to rush to cancel transport and accommodation arrangements.

At this TRA ticket counter, a sports coach hands over more than 20 tickets in exchange for a refund.

Securing a large hotel room like this one was no easy feat, but now the booking has to be canceled too. The National Middle School Athletic Games had been originally scheduled to kick off on Saturday. But now they have mostly been postponed.

Coach
It’s a huge blow. It was so difficult to book train tickets and accommodation, and now we have to cancel all of that. It really is a little troublesome. Everyone had planned around this, and now it’s all postponed. That will of course have some impact on training.

Hsu Chen-wei
Hualien commissioner
To protect our athletes as well as their coaches, parents and teachers, and after communicating with Administrative Deputy Minister Lin from the Ministry of Education, we have decided to postpone the games.

Hualien has seen rising COVID numbers in recent days, including a cluster detected at Hualien Hospital, which was originally supposed to offer medical support at the games. Hualien Commissioner Hsu Chen-wei on Thursday announced that most of the games’ sporting events will be postponed. Only six will go on as scheduled, including tennis, weightlifting, archery, and taekwondo poomsae.

Billy Chang
Opening ceremony director
For me, there is nothing I can be upset about. Above everything else, I care for children’s health. Kids’ health is the most important thing.

Despite all the preparations and precautions, athletes, who had been itching to put their skills to the test, will have to wait a little longer before they get the chance to compete.