OLYMPICS/Tai, Sun carry flag for Team Taiwan at Paris Olympics opening ceremony

Paris, July 26 (CNA) Taiwan badminton ace Tai Tzu-ying (戴資穎) and breakdancer Sun Chen (孫振) carried the flag for Team Taiwan (competing under the name "Chinese Taipei") during the Olympic Games opening ceremony held in Paris Friday.

They were joined by 37 Taiwanese athletes and coaching staff on a boat that sailed down the Seine six kilometers, marking the first time in Olympic history the event did not take place in a stadium.

The boat, the 74th to sail into view in the opening ceremony, was also carrying the national delegations of Tajikistan, Tanzania and Tchad.

"[I guess] we don't have to carry the flag the whole way. That would wear out our hands," Sun joked in an interview with CNA.

Asked to comment on his latest "mission," Sun said it is a great honor, given that this is the first time breaking is being featured as a sport.

"There are so many people more experienced than me, and I'm just a rookie at the Olympic Games, so it's definitely an honor for sure," said Sun.

Sun, also known as B-Boy Quake, is one of 21 Taiwanese athletes making their Olympic debut in Paris.

Team Taiwan consists of 60 athletes in 16 disciplines. The country's first medal could come on Saturday evening (Paris time) from judoka Yang Yung-wei (楊勇緯), the team's only top-seeded athlete in Paris, who won a silver medal in Tokyo in 2021.