NPUST is a university with a strong sports ethos. And in order to align its facilities with that ethos, continuous improvements are being made over time. More recently, in 2019, the school received a subsidy of 5 million NTD from the Ministry of Education (MOE) Sports Administration and further added 4 million of its own funds (for a total of 9 million) towards the renovation of the university baseball field. With construction complete in time for the 97th Anniversary Celebration Games, a special opening ceremony was held for the venue on March 26, 2022. NPUST President, Chang-Hsien Tai, led the ceremony along with a numbers of university executives. The wind music club and the Indigenous Cultural Institute were also invited in to share their wonderful talent and set a vibrant mood for the attendees.
President Tai made some remarks, stating that “in addition to cultivating talent, NPUST also gives attention to the health of its students. With the school’s comprehensive sports facilities, everyone has greater opportunity to exercise. Slowly improving over time with new fences and lights, the latest renovations have turned the venue into a brand new Level C baseball and softball field. Not only do we want to thank our predecessors, alumni and all our partners from the Sports Room, but everyone who has contributed to the creation of this stadium – we expect to see NPUST’s positive school style passed down to the next generation so that they can continue to shine!”
In 1986, NPUST moved to its current campus location where it has been working hard to promote physical education. Under the leadership of former national softball player and current director of the Sports Room, Professor Hsiu-Ching Lin, the team has fought many battles—big and small— with brilliant results. In 2011, the team reconstituted itself as a duel-profession softball / baseball team. Through cooperation with the government, NPUST has actively developed its training for sports talent and worked with neighboring regions to create a high-quality educational environment for sports. In this way, not only is the university working to fulfill its social responsibilities, it’s also providing opportunities for practice and competition, and is able to lend its facilities to college leagues for events and spring training.
Since 2013, the MOE Sports Administration has contributed 4.2 million NTD towards the development of the venue—and with an additional 1.8 million from the university, the total amount came to 6 million. With these funds the original softball field was upgraded to a Level-D baseball field, and students were provided with a more quality atmosphere to play in. The university team responded in kind, winning third place in the general men’s group at the 2014 National College Baseball Competition and third place in the Cross-Strait Student Technical College Baseball League competition (group B). In 2020, the university received another 5 million NTD subsidy from the MOE Sports Admin and added another 3.9 million from its own funding for further improvements. From here, the original D-level course was upgraded to a Level-C feild with a player’s bench, record stand, referee room and bullpen practice area.
A standard baseball and softball field is an indispensable facility for a college or university. In addition to promoting the development of sport’s talent and safe and professional sportsmanship, it can also be used to help form cohesion amongst students. And so, when the outstanding performances of Taiwanese athletes at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics brought a flurry of interest in domestic sports to Taiwan, NPUST kept the momentum going by making upgrades that will translate into better results in the future— both for the student’s enrolled at the university and for the students of neighboring elementary schools, middle schools, and high schools who will be able come for training as they also work towards accomplishing great things in Taiwan’s world of sports.
