Sport of Orienteering Taking Off in Taiwan

The sport of orienteering is growing in Taiwan, with the national youth team even winning medals at international events.

Transcript

00:00An athlete shows off a sport that's got a devoted and growing following.

00:11Using just a map and a compass, competitors must find their way over obstacles, racing

00:16to scan in at designated checkpoints before their rivals.

00:20And there's no GPS to help.

00:27This is orienteering, a kind of real-world treasure hunt that's timed.

00:32And many athletes who started out in other disciplines have found the rush, and the skilled

00:36preparation it takes, addictive.

00:54Part of the appeal is its similarity to games like the wildly popular Pokemon Go, but also

01:00that it forces competitors to put down their phones and use navigation skills that are

01:04often forgotten today.

01:12And under the direction of coaches like Lai Wei-Lun, Taiwan's national team is already

01:17seeing results.

01:18Despite tough conditions, including a sick teammate, the team won two bronze medals at

01:23last year's Asian Youth Tournament in Thailand.

01:43Though still far from the mainstream popularity of baseball or basketball, orienteers like

01:48this hope to spread the word, and bring home even more medals next time.

01:52I'm Dolphin Chen and John Van Triest for Taiwan Plus.