Liao Jin-ting Soars After Low Point, Wins Double Gold in Javelin and Shot Put at National Games for the Disabled

Central News Agency, Taipei, May 26. The 115th National Games for the Disabled concluded its final day of track and field events today. Liao Jin-ting, once a rising star in domestic pole vaulting, who was forced to rely on a wheelchair for life following a car accident, has soared once again, clinching double gold in the javelin and shot put.

Representing Yunlin County, Liao secured gold in both the javelin and shot put over the four-day competition. Today, he set a new national record in the shot put with a distance of 6.23 meters, in addition to winning a bronze medal in the discus.

Now 26, Liao was a regular on the national team during his youth and once placed fourth in the men's pole vault at the Asian Junior Championships. However, a severe spinal injury from a 2023 car accident led doctors to declare he would be wheelchair-bound for life.

Recalling that time, Liao said, "At first, I couldn't accept the reality. I spent all day arguing with my parents, my girlfriend, and the doctors, convinced that as an athlete, I would surely make a full recovery. Later, seeing my parents' hair turn gray, my girlfriend refusing to speak to me out of frustration, and the massive costs of daily hospital rehabilitation, I realized I couldn't go on living like that."

In an interview, Liao mentioned, "I started attending classes, relearning how to eat, bathe, and change clothes. I remember laughing for a long time the first time I managed to put on shorts by myself after two hours of effort."

Having emerged from his low point, Liao decided to return to the track he knew best. He joked, "Since I can't fly anymore, I'll just work hard on the ground. Even though I was a professional athlete, throwing from a seated position is a completely different matter; everything had to be retrained from scratch."

After his injury, Liao got a new tattoo on his left arm, symbolizing his second life. He said, "The tattoo design changed from a falling angel to a great angel spreading its wings. I hope to use the resilience of my life to tell everyone: it's not scary to fall; what's scary is not being willing to get back up."