Taichung forges ahead with 2019 East Asian Youth Games preparations

2016/12/21

Taichung City Government received recognition and praise from an international Olympics delegation Dec. 17-18 for its preparations ahead of the first-ever East Asian Youth Games, which will be held in the central Taiwan city in 2019.

The East Asian Youth Games are the successor to the East Asian Games, which were held every four years from 1993 to 2013, with the last games taking place in Tianjin, mainland China. The youth games are organized by the Olympic Council of Asia and will be held from Aug. 24-31, 2019.

Taichung City Mayor Lin Chia-lung received the delegation and said the facilities being constructed in the city for the games are environmentally friendly and energy efficient, and conform with OCA standards. He added that, in line with the youth games’ theme of “Young and Green,” his city attaches great importance to the cultivation of athletic talent and seeks to provide an atmosphere conducive to sports.

While attending the 1st East Asian Olympic Committees Coordination Commission meeting Dec. 17 in Taichung City, Song Luzeng, chairman of the sports body and leader of the delegation, praised the efforts of the city government and its contributions to Asia’s Olympic events. “I believe that in three years’ time, through hard work and collaboration, the 1st East Asian Youth Games will be a great success,” he said.

The delegation, which included experts from Hong Kong, Japan, Macau, South Korea and mainland China, visited several venues, including the Chaoma Sports Center, where the badminton events will be held. Construction on the center began in August 2014 and was completed in April. The tour also visited the Multifunctional Sports Center, which will stage the taekwondo and judo events.

Featuring 14 Olympic and non-Olympic sports, the East Asian Youth Games will bring together over 2,300 athletes from the nine EAOC members, namely Taiwan, Guam, Hong Kong, Japan, Macau, Mongolia, North Korea and South Korea, as well as mainland China. According to the Taichung City Government, the games are expected to bring in around NT$1 billion (US$31 million) in business and tourism revenues.

Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=250537&ctNode=2194&mp=9)