Taiwan's taekwondo fighter Lo Chia-ling wins silver at Belgian Open

Taipei, March 23 (CNA) Taiwanese Lo Chia-ling (羅嘉翎) won silver in the women's 62-kilogram division at the Belgian Open taekwondo competition in Lommel on Sunday, her first international podium finish since the 2024 Paris Olympics.

The two-time Olympian advanced to the final after defeating Spain's Ekaterina Rebón Fedorova, but lost to Turkey's Hatice Pınar Yiğitalp to finish second.

Lo, who won a bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, had been struggling with a stress fracture in her left leg in recent years and underwent surgery in 2025.

Her coach, Liu Tsung-ta (劉聰達), told CNA on Sunday that her training over the past year had been limited, in an effort to avoid aggravating the injury. However, based on her recent performance, Lo appears to have recovered well, physically and mentally, he added.

The team will now focus on building Lo's fitness and strength as she targets a berth at the 2026 Asian Games in Nagoya this fall, Liu said.

Many athletes face mental challenges when recovering from major injuries, he said, adding that a sports psychologist has been brought in to work with Lo ahead of the Asian Taekwondo Championships in May, a key qualifier for the Asian Games.

Given Lo's current progress, Liu said, he remains confident about her performance.

The Belgian Open was held March 21-22, with Taiwanese athletes winning three silver and three bronze medals in total.

Hsu Hao-yu (徐晧祐) and Wang Chieh-ling (王婕菱) secured silver medals in the men's 68-kg and women's 47-kg divisions, respectively.

Lin Wei-chun (林唯均), Liu You-yun (劉侑芸), and Tsai Yu-hao (蔡宇豪) took bronze in the women's 57-kg, women's 49-kg, and men's 68-kg categories, respectively.