Chinese athletes appear to be skipping World Games opening

As of 10 a.m., only 18 Chinese journalists, two Chinese business executives and representatives of two Chinese cities had completed registration, said Chang Chun-yang, director of the city government's Department of Information Management.

According to Chang, many Chinese athletes have arrived in the host city of Kaohsiung in southern Taiwan, but none of them have registered for the event as of Thursday morning.

The curtain will rise on the 2009 World Games this evening in Taiwan's second largest city, with President Ma Ying-jeou set to announce the start of the 11-day sports extravaganza in his capacity as head of state of the host country.

The event is historically significant for Taiwan as it has been politically isolated due to its tug-of-war with China over diplomatic recognition. It is the largest sports event to be ever held in the country. It is also the first time that Taiwan is hosting a large-scale international athletic event that covers such a wide range of different sports.

Relations between Taiwan and China have improved dramatically since President Ma took office last year, pledging to stop the diplomatic tug-of-war and forge closer economic and cultural ties in a reversal of the policy followed by the previous pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)-led administration.

China is known to be fielding 72 athletes to compete in eight sports, including sumo wrestling, water skiing and martial arts.

According to local media reports, the Chinese delegation will not attend the opening ceremony to avoid giving the impression that Beijing authorities recognize Ma's status as president of the Republic of China or Taiwan's status as a sovereign state.

Asked about her views on the reports, Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu said that she would respect the Chinese delegation's decision.

Meanwhile, ruling Kuomintang Legislator Wu Yu-sheng said that to the best of his knowledge, China's decision to have its athletes skip the opening ceremony was the result of a brainstorming session between the Chinese Taipei Olympic Committee and Chinese authorities.

"The two sides discussed the issue frankly and sincerely before reaching that decision, " Wu said, adding that he fully supports the arrangement.

"It's a wise, goodwill decision that will contribute to harmony and the development of relations between our two sides," Wu said.

Nearly 5,000 athletes and team members from 105 countries around the world are expected to attend the grand opening ceremony at a newly built eco-friendly stadium.

The 2009 World Games will be the biggest since it was launched in Santa Clara, California in 1981, the Kaohsiung World Games Organizing Committee said.

The event, which involves sports that are not part of the Olympic Games, is held every four years.

As of Thursday morning, 2,700 athletes had completed registration to compete in 31 events that range from rugby sevens and softball to Latin Dance, artistic roller skating, tug of war and korfball.

In a bid to ensure the event's success, Kaohsiung Mayor Chen has traveled to many countries to promote the World Games. She even visited Beijing and Shanghai in May for promotional purposes, despite criticism from some members of the pro-independence DPP with which she is affiliated.

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