Taiwan Athletics Open Suspended After Upgrade; Ministry of Sports Continues Efforts to Host

The Taiwan Athletics Open was upgraded from a World Athletics (WA) Bronze Label event in 2024 to a Silver Label event this year, thanks to the efforts of the Chinese Taipei Athletics Association. This upgrade includes regulations on the level of participating athletes and appearance fees for elite foreign athletes. The Taiwan Athletics Open, originally scheduled for June 6 and 7, had already obtained the "Continental Tour Silver Label" this year. Only Taiwan, China, Israel, and India in Asia have received this "Silver Label" certification. According to the World Athletics 2026 Tour official website, only 46 events worldwide have received "Silver Label" certification this year. Silver Label events have points and scale equivalent to the "World University Games (Universiade)" and offer a total prize money of up to 75,000 US dollars, making them one of the few platforms for Taiwanese athletes to earn international points. To meet the Silver Label specifications, the competition must host at least 12 events, ensuring at least 5 events each for men and women, including jumping and throwing events. Each event must feature at least three top athletes ranked among the "world's top 100." This competition was not only Taiwan's premier international athletics event but also the last opportunity to qualify for the Nagoya Asian Games. "Taiwan's fastest man," Yang Chun-han, had originally planned this competition as his first domestic event of the season, but this will now not be realized. Li Yang stated that although the public budget is currently stalled, the Ministry of Sports will continue to assist the Athletics Association, hoping to use the Sports Development Fund budget to keep this competition running and not affect the participation rights of Taiwanese athletes. (Edited by Lung Po-an)1150409