OLYMPICS/Aug. 4 recap: Taiwan upsets China to take badminton men's doubles gold

Taipei, Aug. 5 (CNA) Team Taiwan won its first gold medal at the Paris Olympics following an upset victory in the men's doubles badminton final on Sunday, hours after boxer Lin Yu-ting (林郁婷) secured a semifinal berth, ensuring the team's third medal from the ring.

Badminton: Back-to-Back championships

Tokyo Olympic gold medalists Lee Yang (李洋) and Wang Chi-lin (王齊麟) defended their men's doubles title after a 76-minute battle against the world No. 1 duo from China, Liang Weikeng (梁偉鏗) and Wang Chang (王昶).

After winning the first game 21-17, the Taiwanese shuttlers lost the next game 18-21 before clinching the decisive last game 21-19.

The victory makes them the first Taiwanese badminton players to medal more than once at the Games. Only one other Taiwanese athlete, weightlifter Hsu Shu-ching (許淑淨), has ever won back-to-back Olympic golds following her victories in London 2012 and Rio 2016.

Boxing: One more medal

Lin Yu-ting (林郁婷) ensured that Team Taiwan would leave Paris with three boxing medals after she defeated Svetlana Staneva of Bulgaria in the women's 57-kg quarterfinal by unanimous decision.

The 28-year-old Lin joined Wu Shih-yi (吳詩儀), who won a bronze in the women's 60-kg, and Chen Nien-chin (陳念琴), who competes in the women's 66-kg, in making it to the semifinals.

Since there is no third-place playoff in boxing, Team Taiwan has bagged at least three bronzes in the discipline, surpassing its one bronze in Tokyo three years ago for a new record.

Lin, who has focused on preparing for the Games and ignored the online abuse fueled by misconceptions about her gender identity and the unspecified "test" conducted by the International Boxing Association (IBA), embraced her coach Tseng Tzu-chiang (曾自強) in tears after the bout.

Praising her rival for being "very strong and respectful," Lin admitted that she was somewhat nervous in the first round but improved significantly in the following two. "Although I won today, it's too early to celebrate now. There are still two more matches; my goal is gold."

Throughout the rematch with Staneva, whom the Taiwanese double world champion defeated in the 2023 World Championships quarterfinal before her disqualification by the IBA, Lin faced multiple verbal and physical provocations from the Bulgarian boxer, prompting the referee to warn Staneva to mind her behavior.

The 34-year-old veteran continued her unfounded protests after her loss was confirmed, making an "X" sign with her index fingers to the audience, suggesting that she has a pair of X chromosomes while Lin does not.

It was only when Lin was about to leave the ring that Staneva appeared to soften, sitting on the ropes to make space for the Taiwanese pugilist's exit.

Unlike her quick departure from the North Paris Arena after the round of 16 victory, Lin did stop at the media area to take a brief interview with the international press but did not respond to the outcry regarding her gender eligibility.

"I want to thank all the Taiwanese fans for their support, which keeps me working to achieve my dream," Lin said.

She will face Esra Yıldız Kahraman of Turkey in the semifinal on Thursday.

Athletics: Stopped in the qualifier

Meanwhile, Lin Yu-tang (林昱堂) failed to qualify for the final in his men's long jump Olympic debut.

The 24-year-old long jumper, whose personal best is 8.40 meters, recorded a longest jump of 7.70 meters on Sunday in his first attempt. He fouled on his second jump before landing in the sand pit with a distance of 7.66 meters on his final try.

After the qualification, Lin revealed that he was suffering from a left knee injury and felt a twinge when he jumped but said, "Now that I've come, I wanted to give it a try."

Lin told Taiwan's ELTA TV that his experience at the 2023 World Championships had prepared him well for a top-tier competition like the Games, adding that he will learn from the failure in Paris and perform better in the World Championships in 2025.

Golf: No medal this time

Also on Sunday, golfers Pan Cheng-tsung (潘政琮) and Kevin Yu (俞俊安) completed the four-day individual competition, finishing 18th and 52nd among 60 competitors, including two who had withdrawn.

Pan, who won a bronze medal in the event at the previous Tokyo Games, finished tied for 18th place with a total score of 276, eight under par, while Yu, competing in his first Olympic Games, scored 288, four over par.

The women's four-day event will take place from Wednesday, with Chien Pei-yun (錢珮芸) and Hsu Wei-ling (徐薇淩) vying for medals.