UNDER INVESTIGATION: Taiwan has replaced the damaged banner and more cameras have been installed to protect athletes and staff, the sports ministry said/ Staff writer, with CNA請繼續往下閱讀...The Ministry of Sports yesterday called for mutual respect after a banner at a training facility used by Taiwanese athletes at the Asian Games was defaced to cover up the Chinese characters for “national” and the English word “Taiwan” in Nagoya, Japan.The banner, displayed at Misono Elementary School in Nagoya, was defaced with ink, the Chunichi Shimbun reported on Wednesday.The orange banner, measuring about 5m long by 1.5m wide, hung near the entrance to the former elementary school. In white lettering it read “National Sports Training Center” （國家運動訓練中心） in Mandarin with the English name “Taiwan Sports Training Center.”The Taiwan delegation moved into the facility on Wednesday last week, and on Monday, the Chinese characters for “country” or “national” （國家） and the English word “Taiwan” had been smeared with ink, local media reported, including Chunchi, which published a photograph of the damaged banner.The Nagoya City Board of Education, which oversees the facility, was notified of the vandalism on Monday afternoon, the newspaper reported, citing investigators.Aichi Prefectural Police are investigating the incident as a case of vandalism, Kyodo News reported.Authorities have not disclosed the full details of the vandalism, and the identity and motive of the perpetrator remain unknown, it said.The Taiwanese delegation replaced the banner and additional cameras have been installed to protect the safety of athletes, coaches and staff, the ministry said in a statement.The ministry thanked Japanese police for their prompt assistance and called on them to ensure the safety of Taiwanese athletes and staff members.The facility provides athletes with medical care and support so they can focus on competing in the Games, which start tomorrow and run through Oct. 4, the ministry said, adding that it did not want unnecessary disturbances to interfere with operations there.When members of Taiwan’s gymnastics team arrived, they were quickly ushered inside, apparently to prevent them from being questioned by reporters outside the school, according to a Liberty Times reporter who was at the school.The ministry urged everyone to demonstrate their competitive spirit through their performance rather than engaging in conflict off the field.Such behavior was unnecessary and unsporting, it added.Taiwan respects the national teams representing all participating countries and hopes everyone would show the same respect for each other, it said.Additional reporting by Fion Khan and Wu Meng-ju新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
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