The president of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) yesterday said that politics — in the form of a welcoming ceremony involving Taiwan — had already entered into the Asian Games.

He did not sound pleased about it, speaking just hours before the official opening ceremony.

Some events at the Asian Games began several days ago to accommodate a packed schedule and more than 17,000 athletes and officials. Up to 5,000 are housed on a cruise ship.

“I don’t think, you know, the politicians or politics should be involved in sports,” said Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani, speaking with media at the Asian Games.

He is a younger brother of the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

Sheikh Joaan was asked about an incident on Friday at the Asian Games in which Minister of Sports Lee Yang was temporarily barred from a welcoming ceremony and a flag-raising.

Photo: Reuter

Lee was later allowed to participate and the OCA attributed the incident to a misunderstanding.

“We don’t mix sports with politics and we already have,” Sheikh Joaan said. “We’re going to take — if something like this will happen, we have our way of taking care of it. And all the delegations know what the protocol is and what should be done, and what shouldn’t be done.”

Lee is a two-time Olympic gold medalist in badminton. He won gold twice in doubles — 2020 and 2024 — each time defeating a Chinese pair in the final.

Photo: Reuters

Taiwanese media reported that the OCA had issued an order barring Lee.

Taiwanese officials asked to see the order, but officials were unable to produce it, they reported.

“We chose to stick to our principles,” said Chen Shih-kwei, a vice president of Taiwan’s Olympic committee. “We asked the local organizing committee and the OCA to uphold the Olympic spirit so that we could attend all events equally and with dignity. We insisted on this, and then negotiations began. We stood firm on our dignity and principles.”

Lee later told Taiwanese reporters that “we are doing our best to safeguard our rights and do not want to be subjected to any form of suppression.”

“We also hope more Taiwanese athletes can perform at their best and give their all at the games so that Taiwan can be more visible on the international stage,” he added.

The opening ceremony was held later yesterday in Nagoya, although several events — basketball, cricket, soccer, handball, field hockey, modern pentathlon, soft tennis, teqball and volleyball — began up to a week ago.

Taiwanese teams and athletes have featured in several of the early-starting events.

In basketball, Taiwan’s men’s team were defeated in their quarter-final against Japan on Wednesday, losing 85-78 after advancing from group play with a 2-1 record. The women’s side won their first group game, beating Mongolia 76-67 on Friday. They face Malaysia on Monday.

In soccer, Taiwan’s women’s side won their first two games in Group E. They downed Vietnam 2-1 on Monday and Thailand 1-0 on Thursday, with Japan awaiting tomorrow.

Taiwan’s women lost their hockey opener against South Korea 3-1 on Friday and face China tomorrow.

In soft tennis, the men’s and women’s teams have reached the medals rounds.

In the women’s Group B, Taiwan beat Thailand, Mongolia and the Philippines, all 3-0. They face South Korea at the Nagoya City Higashiyama Park Tennis Center in the semi-finals today.

The men’s team beat Laos, India and Mongolia, also 3-0 in each, in Group C, and also face South Korea in the semis.

Taiwan had accumulated 30 medals in the sport at the Asian Games prior to this year.

In volleyball, the women’s side beat Kyrgyzstan 3-0 on Wednesday and Mongolia 3-0 on Thursday, but lost to Thailand 3-0 on Friday. They face Japan today in the quarters.

Additional reporting by staff writer