OLYMPICS/Judoka Lien Chen-ling out in round 16, reveals little about next steps

Paris, July 29 (CNA) Taiwanese judoka Lien Chen-ling (連珍羚) was knocked out of the Paris Olympics women's 57 kg event after losing in the round of 16 on Monday but declined to comment on her next step immediately after the bout.

The 36-year-old veteran lost to Serbian phenom Marica Perišić by waza-ari, scored on a throw halfway through the match that saw Lien's shoulder touch the ground. Lien failed to score before the end of regulation time.

Lien advanced to the round of 16 by defeating Mariama Koroma from the Republic of Sierra Leone 66 seconds into the contest, before losing to Perišić, with whom she had split their previous two meetings.

Taiwan's first woman to win a judo gold at the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games, Lien finished fifth in her Olympic debut in Rio 2016 and was disqualified in the round of 16 in Tokyo after receiving three shidos, or warning for minor violations.

Instead of breaking into tears as she did in Tokyo after her loss, Lien maintained her composure when talking to the press, saying "thank you" five times before answering any questions.

"From the beginning of the first games, I think I couldn't have stood here on my own," she said, expressing her gratitude for the Taiwanese public's attention to the sport.

"It was just not my day to win today," she added. "I want to leave the mat with my head up to say thank you to you all."

Before the knockout contest in Tokyo, Lien said "a mature athlete has to face the result bravely no matter what because it's a world of wins and losses." She exemplified that spirit today.

However, Taiwan's "Queen of Judo" did not declare whether she would call an end to her career, saying that she has had no time to think about that after devoting so much time to the Games.

She plans to first take a few months' rest after returning to Taiwan.

Meanwhile, Lien's team issued a Facebook post on her behalf, saying that although Lien has won nearly all the major accolades in the discipline except the Olympic gold, "judo has long been instilled in her, and she will continue to make tosses until she no longer wants to do it."

"No matter how it goes, I have tried my best to show what I've learned in my life, [so] I have no regrets," Lien was quoted as saying.

Emphasizing that the post was based on the team's talk with Lien, it also said she will start planning promotional activities for judo to attract more people to the sport.

Lien first joined a judo club in third grade to avoid morning study sessions. She chose to study in Japan in her 20s and after graduation, started her professional judo career by joining the Komatsu Women's Judo Club.

Her loss means Team Taiwan has completed its judo journey in Paris this summer without securing a medal. This follows the earlier eliminations of Tokyo silver medalist Yang Yung-wei (楊勇緯) in the men's 60 kg event repechage, and Lin Chen-hao (林真豪) in the women's 48 kg event round of 16 last Saturday.