Mainland universities' visit to promote exchanges between youth on both sides of Taiwan Strait: organizer

The upcoming visit by mainland universities to Taiwan will promote exchanges between young people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, said Hsiao Hsu-tsen, executive director of the Taiwan-based Ma Ying-jeou Culture and Education Foundation, the organizer of the event.

The foundation announced on Nov 4 that it plans to invite 40 faculty members and students from seven mainland universities to visit the island, following a successful visit by mainland college students in 2023.

"I believe the upcoming exchange holds great promise. After all, the future of both sides of the Taiwan Strait lies in the young people, especially high school and college students, who serve as the seedlings and the foundation. We hope that the young people on both sides will have more interactions. It is our responsibility to lay a solid foundation for our next generation, whether in Taiwan or on the mainland, so that they can have a brighter future. Our actions and words show that we don't want war, we want peace; we don't want 'Taiwan independence', we want the two sides to continue to communicate. This is the real voice of Taiwan," said Hsiao.

The visit is scheduled to start on Nov 27 and will last nine days and eight nights.

The mainland students and teachers are from Peking University, Tsinghua University, Fudan University, Sun Yat-sen University, Zhejiang University, Fujian Normal University and Beijing Sport University. The students will include Olympic champions, table tennis gold medalist Ma Long from Beijing Sport University, and shooting gold medalist Yang Qian from Tsinghua University.

They will visit six universities in Taiwan, including Taiwan University, Tsing Hua University in Hsinchu, Chengchi University, Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Chinese Culture University in Taiwan, and Chang Gung University, as well as the Taipei Municipal Zhongshan Girls High School.

The itinerary will also include visits to scenic spots such as Sun Moon Lake so that mainland students will have an in-depth understanding of Taiwan's history and natural beauty. Additionally, the foundation will arrange baseball experience activities, allowing mainland students to engage firsthand with Taiwan's popular baseball culture.

This is the second such visit planned by the foundation. In 2023, faculty members and students from five mainland universities were warmly received across Taiwan, positively impacting cross-Strait relations.

In 2023 and 2024, Ma Ying-jeou, former chairman of the Chinese Kuomintang, also led youth groups from Taiwan on visits to the mainland.

Mainland universities' visit to promote exchanges between youth on both sides of Taiwan Strait: organizer

The Hainan team swept both the men's and women's titles in the debuted coconut tree climbing competition at the China's biggest ethnic sports event on Sunday.

This outcome is unsurprising, given that the sport originated in the province as a common practice for picking coconuts.

Held in the city of Sanya, the 12th National Traditional Games of Ethnic Minorities of China saw the debut of coconut tree climbing.

Participants are required to ascend a rather narrow-looking piece of timber in the quickest time and hit the button at the top. It is a race against time and a battle of techniques. And since this sport's most important apparatus is unique to Hainan Province, it is no wonder that the hosts are pretty good at it.

Luo Jun of the Li ethnic group won the men's title in a time of 6.188 seconds, and Fu Shijun, whose ethnicity is Han, won the women's title in 6.663 seconds. Both are from Hainan and delighted to have the chance to show their abilities in front of a home crowd and promote their sport.

"I'm definitely excited. It never occurred to me that I should win the title, but unexpectedly, I really made it. I'm very excited and thrilled. All of us in Hainan would climb up the three to pick coconuts if we want drink fresh coconut juice. Now thanks to the game, more has come to know the sport of coconut tree climbing, which is good to promote Hainan's traditional sports," said Luo.

"I'm a sprinter, and I believe my training has helped build my explosive power, which gives me an advantage in climbing. When I was younger, I always wanted to climb trees and pick coconuts to drink fresh coconut juice, but I didn't have the strength to do it. Now that I'm stronger, I decided to try the sport and fulfill that childhood dream. Winning the first-ever title at home feels incredible, especially because I can bring glory to Hainan," said Fu.

The National Traditional Games of Ethnic Minorities, held every four years since its inception in 1953, is primarily focused on mass sports activities. Therefore, the participants are mainly non-professional athletes.

The event, which opened last Friday, will run until this coming Saturday.

Hainan sweeps men, women's titles in coconut tree climbing