The weight of 23 million Taiwanese who hoped to realize golden dreams of a medal in cycling rested entirely on the shoulders of one competitor; Taichung's own Hsiao Mei-yu. Hsiao competed on both the road and the track in the Women's Road Race and the Women's Omnium.
After an unfortunate crash in less than ideal conditions, Hsiao finished over the time limit in the road race. The race was ultimately, and not unexpectedly, won by the incredible Marianne Vos of the Netherlands. Vos has won just about every contest there is as she has been dubbed, "the female Eddy Merckx".
In the Omnium, Hsiao finished 17th out of 18 competitors in the final. Laura Trott of the host country took home the gold.
Despite her difficulties in both events, just being an Olympian is laudable enough, especially from a small country that must fight to even be seen at the Olympics in the recent dispute over displays of the ROC flag.
With more cyclists becoming interested in the sport early on, I am confident Taiwan will become a greater force in the various cycling disciplines. It is just a matter of time. There are some very talented young cyclists champing at the bit for an opportunity in four more years to represent Taiwan.
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Also:
- Taiwanese-American Olympic windsurfer gives up the sail for the cycle. Ted Huang discusses his choice to represent Taiwan as an Olympian and on turning his back on his former sport.
“Windsurfing is a loner sport,” he says. “I like the camaraderie of cycling.
- Here is an excellent blog on Biking and Camping while touring Taiwan. Lots of excellent info if you would like to rough it in the great outdoors.
