Exploring the ‘lost’ 2019 Taichung East Asian Youth Games: a governance theory perspective

Abstract

This research analyses the key factors that contributed to the cancellation of the 2019 Taichung East Asian Youth Games. The systemic governance approach is used to frame and interpret dynamic relations and interactions in the network, illustrating changes in events. In addition, documentary analysis is used to construct the background context, and responses from in-depth interviews provide diverse perspectives. The East Asian Olympic Committee (EAOC) revoked Taichung’s hosting rights in 2018 after the proposal of a name rectification referendum, which was seen as a challenge to the Olympic Protocol specified in the Lausanne Agreement. However, based on the relationships and interactions among stakeholders, the cancellation was strategically manipulated to achieve specific goals. A stakeholder with close relations in the network can obtain support from others to determine the outcome. The results show how critical political considerations are to Taiwan/ROC when interacting with China/PRC in the same network.

Keywords:

• Governance
• stakeholder
• dynamic relation
• East Asian Youth Games
• mega-event

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.