Former Kuomintang chairwoman to attend Games' opening ceremony

Hung Hsiu-chu, former chairwoman of the Kuomintang party, will attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games on Friday, a mainland spokesman said.

She arrived in Beijing on Wednesday, Ma Xiaoguang, spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, said on Thursday.

Hung said in a post on her Facebook account on Thursday that she is very happy to be invited for the ceremony. She said she has arrived in Beijing safely, cooperated with quarantine measures and entered the closed-loop system of the Games.

The Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics will be another great event for the Chinese people on the international sports stage after the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics, Huang said in the post, adding that during the 2008 event, she deeply felt the glory of the Chinese nation.

In 2008, many Taiwan compatriots also watched the wonderful opening performance of the Beijing Olympic Games on TV, and both the Bird's Nest – the National Stadium – and the Water Cube – the National Aquatics Center – became popular new terms in Taiwan, she said.

Hung said she's honored to be able to participate in the two sports events hosted by the Chinese people, and to witness and share the glory of the nation.

"The Olympic spirit is 'unity, peace and friendship'. I hope that the torch will shine across the Taiwan Straits to gradually eliminate the current divergence and indifference between the two sides," she said.

Hung also expressed the hope that the athletes from both sides can grasp the opportunity and win glory for the nation.