Chinese participants absent as Asia Pride Games open in Kaohsiung

Taipei, May 2 (CNA) The 2026 Kaohsiung Asia Pride Games opened Friday without Chinese participants, following a dispute over entry procedures and allegations that some applicants submitted questionable materials or had party, government or military affiliations in China.

Yang Chih-chun (楊智群), chairperson of the Taiwan Gay Sports and Movement Association (TGSMA), the main organizer, told CNA on Saturday that around 1,900 athletes from 18 countries had checked in for the Games, with no Chinese participants attending.

The annual Games, held in the southern port city for the first time, opened Friday and will run through Sunday, the Kaohsiung City Government's Sports Development Bureau, a co-organizer of the event, said in a news release.

Under the slogan "Play with Pride," this year's Games feature 14 sports and welcome athletes "from various countries," the bureau said.

The bureau's Saturday release, however, did not mention the absence of Chinese participants, even though 834 Chinese participants had registered for this year's Games, according to figures previously released by the bureau.

Applications questioned

The absence of Chinese participants first drew public attention Monday, when bureau head Hou Tsun-yao (侯尊堯) told a city council session that Chinese applications had surged and that some applicants were found to lack athletic credentials or to have submitted suspected falsified materials.

The bureau said later that day that the 834 Chinese registrants represented a "sharp increase" from the double-digit figures seen in previous editions.

Among the 337 applications involving Chinese participants that the bureau had received from TGSMA as of March 18, some involved applicants who indicated they had military status in China, the bureau added.

Asked how it identified suspected falsified materials and alleged military links, the bureau told CNA in a separate response Thursday that it found "materials containing wording that appeared to have been generated by AI," while some applicants had checked boxes indicating "party, government or military status."

Entry procedures stalled

The bureau said TGSMA made the final decision that Chinese participants could not attend after their itineraries were found to be inconsistent with the itinerary previously approved by the Ministry of Sports.

It added that, because the issue emerged only around two days before the Games, there was "not enough time" to complete the required procedures for the Chinese participants to enter Taiwan.

TGSMA therefore informed Chinese participants on Monday afternoon that they could not enter Taiwan because the application process had not been completed and that their registration fees would be refunded, the bureau said.

Regarding the potential impact on Chinese athletes who had applied in good faith, the bureau did not directly address the question, saying only that all overseas participants must first comply with Taiwan's entry application rules set by the ministry and the National Immigration Agency.

In a BBC Chinese report published Thursday, Yang said he believed the matter had been overly politicized, arguing that government agencies were unwilling to take any risks ahead of Taiwan's local elections later this year that could affect the election outcome.