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Taiwan Horror: A major controversy has broken out at Taiwan's top-ranked National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) after a women's soccer coach was accused of coercing student-athletes to donate blood multiple times in return for important academic credits required for graduation. The trainer, Zhou Tai-ying, 61, a major name in Taiwan's women's football circle, was said to have intimidated players into having hundreds of blood tests throughout their studies. The revelations sent shockwaves on social media, with most referring to him as the "vampire coach."

Student Tells Of 'Blood For Credits' Ordeal

The scandal was exposed when a student, last name Jian, courageously went public with her experience. Jian alleged that she had been coerced into donating blood over 200 times in order to earn the 32 credits she needed for graduation. Sometimes it meant constant blood draws for as long as 14 days, as frequently as three times a day, between 5 am and 9 pm," Jian said in a report by South China Morning Post. “It was truly blood and sweat for credit. By the eighth consecutive day of blood draws, they could barely find a vein in either arm. They even tried my wrist and failed. It was excruciating,” Jian wrote in a post that included a video of her sobbing during the procedure.

Students claim that the blood was drawn by untrained personnel under the guise of on-campus research experiments, which is a grave ethical and legal issue. In other cases, money designated to pay participants was allegedly taken in by the coach as so-called "team funds. Another student who requested anonymity exposed that Zhou supposedly bullied the students and instilled an atmosphere of fear and coercion. She claimed she concealed the ordeal from her parents for fear of hurting them.

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University Fires Coach, Releases Apology

Under fire for growing criticism, NTNU on July 13 said Zhou had been terminated from all coaching and administrative responsibilities and banned permanently from coaching any sports teams. The university also made public a handwritten apology letter from Zhou, in which he wrote: "I truly apologise for the damage to the involved students, teachers, and reputation of the university. I regret terribly the emotional anguish brought about by my statement to the students and would like to apologise to all who were offended." But later on, the statement and apology were deleted from the official social media accounts of the university, further fuelling indignation and speculations. Taiwan's domestic education ministry imposed an administrative sanction on NTNU, compelling it to correct its behavior. At the same time, social media users are demanding a complete criminal probe into what many call an inhumane and bizarre scandal.

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One outraged comment read, “Exchanging blood for school credits? Drawing 200 vials and still surviving to graduation? This sounds like attempted murder. Where are the police?” Another user questioned whether Zhou acted alone: “I don’t believe this was just the coach’s idea. Who actually profited from this? The truth must come out.” At the time of reporting, Zhou Tai-ying has not responded to any interview requests. The true motive behind the forced blood donations and how Zhou may have benefited financially or otherwise remains unclear. The scandal has shocked Taiwan’s education sector, raising urgent questions about student rights, unethical research practices, and the oversight of university sports programs.