Asian Shooting Confederation Visits Taiwan and Affirms the Hosting of the 12th Asian Airgun Championships in Taoyuan
Asian Shooting Confederation (ASC) President Shaikh Ali Abdulla Hamad Alkhalifa and CEO Duaij KH F S Alotaibi visited the Sports Administration, Ministry of Education, accompanied by Chinese Taipei Shooting Association (CTSA) Honorary President Kuo Chung Hsing and President Steven S.K. Chen on March 26, 2019. The ASC visitors exchanged experiences of hosting international shooting events with Director-General Kao Chin-Hsung of the Sports Administration and praised the results of Taiwan’s effort to promote the sport of shooting.
The 12th Asian Airgun Championships is currently underway at the National Shooting Training Base - Gongxi Shooting Range in Taoyuan from March 27 to April 1. The officials from the ASC personally visited to inspect the newly-built shooting facility and attended the pre-competition technical meeting to ensure the smooth running of the event.
Director-General Kao of the Sports Administration stated during the meeting that the Gongxi Shooting Range was completed in 2018 with world-class facilities and diet to ensure that the physical condition and training support are readily available for the athletes.
ASC President Alkhalifa was highly impressed with the Gongxi Shooting Range and affirmed Taiwan’s ability to stage international sporting events. He also thanked the Sports Administration and the CTSA for the continuous efforts and supports toward the sport of shooting.
Taiwan’s shooters are looking to repeat their 2018 Asian Games four-medal haul at the 12th Asian Airgun Championships that involves 120 shooters from 11 member federations of the ASC. The Taiwan national team, comprised of 27 shooters participating in 12 disciplines, includes Wu Chia Ying, who won the 10-meter air pistol silver medal at the 2019 International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) Rifle/Pistol World Cup in New Delhi, India, and obtained the second ticket for participation of our nation in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics shooting events; thus, showcasing the success of Taiwan in the promotion of shooting sport.
ASC CEO Alotaibi also mentioned that the ASC will encourage more Asian national shooting teams to train at the Gongxi Shooting Range in preparation for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Director-General Kao welcomed the idea and said that, through this kind of sports exchange, athletes from home and abroad could interact further and learn from each other’s experiences. The Sports Administration will continue to support the CTSA in the future to engage in international sports exchange activities to help raise Taiwan’s international profile in the sport of shooting, he added.
