Taiwan cheerleader attack highlights safety risks of industry

Wang Ching-wen, or “Wen Wen,” a 28-year-old member of the Taiwanese cheerleading team Passion Sisters, was attacked at a photo event in Taipei, suffering a cut that nearly cost the girl her life, according to East Week magazine, a sister publication of The Standard.

The incident not only sounded an alarm about the personal safety of the cheerleaders but also drew attention to the ugly side of the cheerleading industry, including low wages for newcomers.

During a portrait-taking event on June 20, a 52-year-old male fan pulled a fruit knife from his jacket and swung it at Wen Wen, leaving a four-centimeter-long, two-centimeter-deep gash on her neck.

Several bystanders then tackled him, and Wen Wen pulled through after being rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment.

Police revealed that the killer became obsessed with Wen Wen three years ago and had once paid HK$5,000 for a signed photo of Wen Wen in a swimsuit.

But last year, he was blacklisted by the cheerleader agency for relentlessly messaging and harassing her. Believed to have harbored a grudge, he used the opportunity of a photo event organized by a third-party company to bypass the agency's security and ambush Wen Wen.

Taiwanese cheerleaders are frequently caught up in incidents of stalking and harassment by obsessed fans. Wen Wen's teammate Hu Xin-yi, or “Sammie,” has been harassed multiple times in the past, including when a fan took an underskirt photo of her.

In Taiwan's professional baseball scene, cheerleaders undergo high-intensity dance training every day, but newcomers earn only about HK$1,500 per game.

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