Wang Chieh-ling Leads Taiwan Women's Taekwondo Team to Asian Championship Victory, Securing Full Asian Games Tickets

Central News Agency, Taipei, May 24. At the Asian Taekwondo Championships held in Mongolia, the Taiwan women's national team, led by gold medalists Wang Chieh-ling and Chang Jui-en, won the team title and secured full qualification for the Nagoya Asian Games. Among them, Wang Chieh-ling was named the Best Female Athlete. The Taiwan women's taekwondo team performed brilliantly in this Asian Championship. On the first day, 17-year-old rising star Wang Chieh-ling led the way with a gold medal in the 46kg category, followed by 19-year-old Liu Yu-yun, who won silver in the 49kg category. On the final day of the tournament, Hangzhou Asian Games silver medalist Lin Wei-chun won bronze in the 57kg category, and Chang Jui-en won gold in the 62kg category, bringing a perfect end to the Asian Championships. Su Tai-yuan, head coach of Taiwan's taekwondo sparring team, told the Central News Agency that Chang Jui-en and Lin Wei-chun, who appeared last, both delivered excellent performances. In particular, Chang Jui-en faced the world-class Chinese champion Luo Zongshi and was able to withstand the pressure and execute the strategy formulated by the coaching staff almost perfectly, showing an outstanding performance. The Taiwan women's taekwondo team accumulated 2 gold, 1 silver, and 1 bronze medals, outperforming their competitors to win the team title and securing full qualification for the Nagoya Asian Games. Among them, the highly anticipated "Taekwondo Sweetheart" Wang Chieh-ling was named Best Female Athlete, and Su Tai-yuan received the Best Female Coach title. Su Tai-yuan described it as feeling like a dream, noting that taekwondo was once Taiwan's "medal bank" but had been in a slump in recent years. He decided to take on the heavy responsibility of head coach last year after thinking about it for nearly half a year, starting by demanding discipline from the athletes and gradually adjusting their condition. Recalling the difficulty he felt when he first took the job and realized the gap in international strength, he expressed special gratitude to the coaching staff who helped him. "We met every day, and because I put a lot of pressure on them, they were pushed very hard by me; it was really tough," he said. Su Tai-yuan believes that although the performance in this Asian Championship exceeded expectations, they can only be happy for one day. Returning to Taiwan is a new beginning, and they will continue to correct details, hold the Asian Games national team selection at the National Sports Training Center on the 29th, and prepare fully for the Nagoya Asian Games in September. Currently, the women's team has secured full tickets, while the men's team must wait for the official announcement, but they should have at least 2 to 3 weight classes.