Sports

Chuang and Jurak advance to second round in Madrid

Taipei Times
Date: May 02, 2016
By: Gavin Meakin / Staff writer, with AP, MADRID

Taiwan’s Chuang Chia-jung and her doubles partner Darija Jurak of Croatia on Saturday

Taiwan’s Chuang Chia-jung, left, chats with an unknown player in Madrid on Wednesday last week. Photo: Courtesy of Chuang Chia-jung’s Facebook page

Taiwan’s Chuang Chia-jung, left, chats with an unknown player in Madrid on Wednesday last week. Photo: Courtesy of Chuang Chia-jung’s Facebook page

defeated Romania’s Irina-Camelia Begu and Monica Niculescu 2-6, 6-4, 10-8 to advance to the second round of the Madrid Masters.

The Taiwanese-Croatian duo struggled to find their form in the first set, but came back stronger in the second and third to claim the victory in 1 hour, 28 minutes on the clay court.

“We turned it around!” Chuang wrote on Facebook after the match.

“In the first set we just could not find our rhythm. We were all over the place,” she said. “In the second set we concentrated on each and every ball. We got our rhythm back, and things improved. In the third set, we settled down more. Our opponents got nervous, so we were able to win.”

Chuang and Jurak next face Switzerland’s Martina Hingis and India’s Sania Mirza, who had a bye in round one.      [FULL  STORY]

HK’s Kary Chan set to blast Taiwan’s bowlers

Taipei Times
Date: Apr 30, 2016
By: Grant Dexter / Staff reporter

After blazing her way to 132 in a women’s Twenty20 match in Hong Kong last month, Kary

From left, Hong Kong women’s national team players Li Yi-ching, Alison Siu and Charlotte Chan and supporter Man Hei relax on Thursday in Tainan ahead of a cricket event at Chang Jung Christian University today and tomorrow. Photo courtesy of Taiwan Cricket

From left, Hong Kong women’s national team players Li Yi-ching, Alison Siu and Charlotte Chan and supporter Man Hei relax on Thursday in Tainan ahead of a cricket event at Chang Jung Christian University today and tomorrow. Photo courtesy of Taiwan Cricket

Chan is in Tainan to play local teams at Chang Jung Christian University today and tomorrow.

The Craigengower Cricket Club are to play a university team, Shih Hu Junior High School and the Darling Daredevils in a mixture of 11-a-side and Sixes matches, with men and women from Hong Kong and Taiwan involved.

Chan told the Taipei Times by e-mail that she is excited to visit Taiwan.

“This is my first time to come to Taiwan,” she said. “I know a lot of cricketers in Taiwan come from a baseball background, so they are very skillful at batting… I can foresee they will have more opportunities to improve their skills.”

Chan knows something about skills. On March 19, she made the season’s top score in their 131-run victory over USRC in a Hong Kong Cricket Association Cup game at the Po Kong Village Reservoir ground.     [FULL  STORY]

Battling Hsieh Su-wei crashes out in Prague

Taipei Times
Date: Apr 30, 2016
By: Dave Carroll / Staff reporter

Taiwanese No. 1 Hsieh Su-wei battled and made it tough, but she could not stop second seed Lucie Safarova advancing to the semi-finals of the Prague Open on Thursday.

Going into the tournament, the Czech world No. 16 had not won a match this season and she came up against a tricky opponent in the Taiwanese world No. 78 before eventually claiming a 7-6 (7/3), 7-5 victory in 1 hour, 47 minutes.

Safarova saved six of nine break points and converted four of eight, winning 84 of the 158 points contested in a topsy-turvy encounter to improve her career record against Hsieh to 2-0.

“She’s always a very tricky player, defending the court very well, and I’m very excited to be through to the semis,” Safarova told the WTA Web site.     [FULL  STORY]

Hsieh Su-wei has mixed day in Prague

COLD CONDITIONS:Top seed Svetlana Kuznetsova, who advanced to the quarter-finals of the singles competition, said she had to wear almost all of the clothes she had with her

Taipei Times
Date: Apr 29, 2016
By: Dave Carroll / Staff reporter Staff reporter

Hsieh Su-wei advanced to the quarter-finals of the singles at the Prague Open on Wednesday, but crashed out in the quarter-finals of the doubles later in the day along with fellow Taiwanese Chuang Chia-jung and Chan Chin-wei.

In the second round of the singles, Taiwanese No. 1 Hsieh rallied after to losing the second set to oust 18-year-old Croatian Ana Konjuh 6-4, 2-6, 6-1 in 1 hour, 37 minutes.

The Kaohsiung-born world No. 78 saved 10 of 13 break points and converted four of eight, winning 82 of the 159 points contested to advance to a quarter-final against Lucie Safarova, who advanced when fellow Czech Lucie Hradecka retired with a neck injury with the second seed leading 6-4, 2-0.     [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan’s Hsieh advances in Prague

TOUGH TEST AWAITS:The Taiwanese and her Belgian doubles partner next face the top-seeded US pairing Raquel Atawo and Abigail Spears in the quarter-finals

Taipei Times
Date: Apr 28, 2016
By: Dave Carroll / Staff reporter

Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei eased into the quarter-finals of the doubles at the Prague Open on Tuesday, while second seed Lucie Safarova returned to winning ways in the singles.

Hsieh and 21-year-old Ysaline Bonaventure completed a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Slovakian duo Jana Cepelova and Viktoria Kuzmova in 62 minutes.

The Taiwanese-Belgian pairing conceded only one break point and converted three of five, winning 56 of the 107 points contested to advance to a tough-looking quarter-final against top-seeded US duo Raquel Atawo and Abigail Spears.

In the singles, second seed Safarova, returning from a bacterial infection that forced her to skip the Australian Open, rallied from a set down to overcome Mariana Duque-Marinoa of Colombia 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 in 2 hours, 2 minutes.     [FULL  STORY]

Taiwanese trio win in Prague

Taipei Times
Date: Apr 27, 2016
By: Dave Carroll / Staff reporter

Hsieh Su-wei advanced to the second round of the Prague Open on Monday after rallying from a set down to oust crowd favorite Kristyna Pliskova, while fellow Taiwanese Chuang Chia-jung and Chan Chin-wei advanced to the quarter-finals of the doubles.

World No. 96 Pliskova, who lives in the Czech capital, started strongly and took the first set 6-4, but the Taiwanese world No. 78 defused her opponent’s powerful game and then it picked apart to complete a 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 victory in 1 hour, 34 minutes.

The Taiwanese No. 1 saved none of the three break points Pliskova created, but converted six of 13, winning 83 of the 148 points contested to set up a second-round clash with 18-year-old world No. 77 Ana Konjuh of Croatia, who stunned sixth seed Jelena Ostapenko 5-7, 6-2, 6-1.

Also advancing to the second round was Czech wild-card Katerina Siniakova, who upset former world No. 11 Alize Cornet of France 7-6 (7/5), 6-3.     [FULL  STORY]

Ultra-trail running challenge held in Kaohsiung

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2016/04/26
By: Chen Ja-fo and CNA intern Brook Hsiao

Taipei, April 25 (CNA) An international ultra-trail running challenge with a series of obstacles 2016042600011combined with outdoor survival skills and mountain training was held on Sunday in Kaohsiung with the participation of more than 50 Taiwanese and foreign athletes.

The Off-Road Tracker was aimed at testing participants’ physical agility and their skills on emergency response and outdoor survival.

The 54 participants in the 20-kilometer race faced a variety of challenges, such as off-road cycling, rappelling, archery, and running while carrying heavy equipment, swimming through a pond and catching fish by hands.

One of some 20 female participants, Lin Mei-ling (林美伶), who won the third place of women’s division of 20-30 years of age, said it is necessary to be physically healthy first if one hopes to get a better development of his/her professional career.

Prior to starting the race, the participants took part in an orientation program in which they learned how to use the facilities and equipment that would be used in the race and got acquainted with each other.     [FULL  STORY]

Taiwanese trio win in Prague

Taipei Times
Date Apr 27, 2016
By: Dave Carroll / Staff reporter

Hsieh Su-wei advanced to the second round of the Prague Open on Monday after rallying from a set down to oust crowd favorite Kristyna Pliskova, while fellow Taiwanese Chuang Chia-jung and Chan Chin-wei advanced to the quarter-finals of the doubles.

World No. 96 Pliskova, who lives in the Czech capital, started strongly and took the first set 6-4, but the Taiwanese world No. 78 defused her opponent’s powerful game and then it picked apart to complete a 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 victory in 1 hour, 34 minutes.

The Taiwanese No. 1 saved none of the three break points Pliskova created, but converted six of 13, winning 83 of the 148 points contested to set up a second-round clash with 18-year-old world No. 77 Ana Konjuh of Croatia, who stunned sixth seed Jelena Ostapenko 5-7, 6-2, 6-1.

Also advancing to the second round was Czech wild-card Katerina Siniakova, who upset former world No. 11 Alize Cornet of France 7-6 (7/5), 6-3.     [FULL  STORY]

ATP Challenger opens in Taipei without toss of coin before matches

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2016/04/25
By: Lee Yu-cheng and Kay Liu

Taipei, April 25 (CNA) The Santaizi ATP Challenger, which incorporates Taiwanese features,

Jimmy Wang (left) and Wu Tung-lin (right).

Jimmy Wang (left) and Wu Tung-lin (right).

kicked off in Taipei Monday, with all home players defeated on the opening day.

The event, part of the the Challenger Tour of Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), is an indoor carpet event that takes place in National Taiwan University Sports Center.

Apart from the tournament’s title, Santaizi, a deity who is a prince, it also uses divination blocks used in temples to replace the coin tossed ahead of a match to decide which player or team serves in the first game.

Taiwanese players who competed in either singles or doubles events, unfortunately, were all defeated on the opening day of the tournament that carries a total prize money of US$75,000.     [FULL  STORY]

Ultra-trail running challenge held in Kaohsiung

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2016/04/26
By: Chen Ja-fo and CNA intern Brook Hsiao

Taipei, April 25 (CNA) An international ultra-trail running challenge with a series of obstacles 2016042600011combined with outdoor survival skills and mountain training was held on Sunday in Kaohsiung with the participation of more than 50 Taiwanese and foreign athletes.

The Off-Road Tracker was aimed at testing participants’ physical agility and their skills on emergency response and outdoor survival.

The 54 participants in the 20-kilometer race faced a variety of challenges, such as off-road cycling, rappelling, archery, and running while carrying heavy equipment, swimming through a pond and catching fish by hands.

One of some 20 female participants, Lin Mei-ling (林美伶), who won the third place of women’s division of 20-30 years of age, said it is necessary to be physically healthy first if one hopes to get a better development of his/her professional career.     [FULL  STORY]