Taipei: Taiwan swept the top four spots in the women’s marathon at the World Speed Skating Championships held in Qinhuangdao City’s Beidaihe District, Hebei Province, China. Leading the charge was Liu Yi-hsuan, who captured the gold medal in a commanding performance on Sunday.

According to Focus Taiwan, Liu finished the 42.195-kilometer race with a time of one hour, eight minutes, and 52.844 seconds. Shih Pei-yu secured the silver medal, followed by Li Meng-chu with bronze, and Li Chiao-jung in fourth place. This race marked the longest distance event of the championships.

Coach Wang Po-fu expressed his surprise at Taiwan’s clean sweep, despite his confidence in Liu as a former world marathon champion. He explained that the team strategically skated in a line, taking turns at the lead to reduce wind resistance. Liu made her decisive move between the final 1,000 and 800 meters to secure her victory.

Liu is no stranger to success, having previously won gold at the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China. She also participated in the Asian Championships in Jecheon, Korea, in July, and the World Games in Chengdu, China, in August. Taiwan’s impressive performance at the championships, which ran from September 13-21, included a men’s 200-meter gold by Kuo Li-yang and ended with a tally of two gold, six silver, and five bronze medals.