Bright yellow running shirts printed with “TAIWAN” caught the eye at the ASML Marathon Eindhoven on October 10–11, 2026. One of the Netherlands’ major annual sporting events, the marathon draws runners from Eindhoven, surrounding areas and beyond. Under the guidance of Taiwan’s Overseas Community Affairs Council (OCAC), the Taiwan Business Families Association in the South Netherlands (TSN) organized “Run for Taiwan,” bringing together more than 100 Taiwanese community members, their families and Dutch friends to run or cheer for Taiwan. Susan Su and Livia Wang, secretaries at the Taipei Representative Office in the Netherlands traveled from The Hague to encourage participants. TSN president Candy Tang was also present to support the event.

On race day, the bright yellow shirts did more than stand out. They brought together Taiwanese runners and supporters, both on and off the course. Whether running or cheering from the sidelines, participants wore the same shirts to show their connection to Taiwan. Event organizer Wan Shiou Lu said, “We encouraged runners and supporters to wear the ‘TAIWAN’ shirts to show Taiwan’s presence. Seeing more people wearing the shirts and cheering for Taiwan brought our community together and helped more people notice Taiwan.”

Dutch friends also joined the event wearing the yellow “TAIWAN” shirts, while some participants returned in shirts from previous years. These familiar shirts reflected the event’s continuity and the participation of local friends alongside Taiwan’s community.

Among the participants were three teachers and students from the Taiwan Center for Mandarin Learning–Taiwan Business Families Association in the South Netherlands (TCML-TSN), who completed the half-marathon together, covering 21.1 kilometers side by side. Dutch student Laurens Versluis, who also took part in Run for Taiwan last year, enjoyed the weather and scenery. He shared that running together was more fun than running alone to set a personal record, and that seeing everyone finish the half-marathon made him happy. Their shared challenge brought the teacher-student connection beyond the Mandarin classroom and onto the race course.

Another TCML student, Erik De Snoo, joined the five-kilometer event on Saturday and returned on Sunday to take part in a group photo with the Taiwanese community, showing his support for Taiwan and TCML.

Through Run for Taiwan, TSN and TCML-TSN create opportunities for Taiwanese community members and their Dutch partners to connect through sport and take part in local community life. Coinciding with Taiwan’s National Day period, the event took on an added significance for the Taiwanese community, offering a chance to celebrate Taiwan together while living abroad.