A torch relay for next year’s Summer Universiade is to include Yushan’s (玉山) main peak, the Taipei Universiade Organizing Committee said yesterday after a delegation successfully lit a prototype torch at the summit.
In a bid to evaluate the possibility of including the mountain in the Universiade’s torch relay route, committee CEO Su Li-chung (蘇麗瓊) led a delegation of committee members to Yushan’s main peak, the highest in the nation at 3,952m.
The prototype torch overcame the low pressure and temperature, the high altitude and sudden gusts of strong winds at the summit, she said, adding that the temperature at the peak yesterday was 3°C.
Photo courtesy of the Taipei Universiade Organizing Committee
By bringing the torch to Yushan, the committee hopes to convey the message of letting Taiwan be seen by the world through the sporting event.
The delegation tested the torch at four locations on the mountain: the Tataka Saddle at 2,610m; the Paiyun Lodge (排雲山莊) at 3,402m; the “white forest” of trees stripped bare by forest fires at 3,096m; and at the summit.
When asked by reporters what he thought of the successful tests, Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) praised the delegation for going to such great lengths to test the torch, adding that he had previously conquered Yushan.
Asked if he would follow the torch to Yushan’s peak to promote the sporting event, Ko said: “Give me a break.”
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