Source:
https://scmp.com/sport/hong-kong/article/3149430/national-games-hong-kong-claim-team-foil-fencing-bronze-after
Sport/ Hong Kong

National Games: Hong Kong claim team foil fencing bronze after beating Jiangsu in play-off

  • The trio of Ryan Choi, Yeung Chi-ka and Cheung Siu-lun claim a fifth medal for Hong Kong so far at the Nationals
  • Hong Kong were beaten by top seeds Fukien in the semi-finals but made no mistake with a 45-36 play-off win but women’s team lose to hosts Shaanxi in their medal play-off
Ryan Choi (right) against Huang Mengkai of Fukien in the team foil semi-finals. Photo: Chinese Fencing Association.

Hong Kong men’s foil team won a bronze medal at the National Games on Monday after defeating Jiangsu 45-36 in a tense third-place play-off while their women counterparts went close to joining them on the podium before losing their third-place play-off.

It represents the fifth medal Hong Kong has won so far at the Games, often referred to as the “mini Olympics” in the mainland.

Hong Kong were the pre-event favourites in the competition, headed by Olympic individual champion Edgar Cheung Ka-long. But the city’s Tokyo hero was forced to pull out at the eleventh hour due to a knee problem. The trio of Ryan Choi Chun-yin, Yeung Chi-ka and Cheung Siu-lun lived up to expectations in the absence of their talisman though with a superb play-off victory.

At the Jizhou Training Centre in Tianjin, Hong Kong, seeded fifth after the individual event on Sunday, made it to the final-four following an upset 45-29 win over fourth seeds Shanghai. But they struggled against top seeds Fukien for a place in the final, eventually losing 45-29, before advancing to the bronze medal play-off match.

Hong Kong girls celebrate after defeating Zhejiang in the quarter-finals. Photo: Chinese Fencing Association
Hong Kong girls celebrate after defeating Zhejiang in the quarter-finals. Photo: Chinese Fencing Association

“It has been a long and difficult journey before making it to Tianjin and we didn’t want to give up easily,” said 36-year-old Cheung, the oldest member of the trio. “We felt upset after Edgar had to pull out of the event due to injury but we still managed to lift bronze. Our mainland counterparts take the National Games very seriously and we are so happy to take a medal home.”

Head fencing coach Zheng Kangzhao said their target was gold, and he was happy with the result knowing the team had been missing their biggest star, Edgar Cheung.

“It would have made a big difference had Edgar fenced for us,” said the coach. “We have beaten Fukien in the past two National Games and we certainly could have done it again with Edgar. Despite the setback, the boys were still able to rise to the occasion, showing strong team spirit to overcome the difficulties.”

Hong Kong's Cheung Siu-lun (right) in the match against Fukien. Photo: Chinese Fencing Association
Hong Kong's Cheung Siu-lun (right) in the match against Fukien. Photo: Chinese Fencing Association

The coach paid tribute to the women’s team after they lost the play-off for bronze to hosts Shaanxi following a 45-36 defeat. In the absence of number one Kimberley Cheung, the quartet of Valerie Cheng Hiu-wai, Kuan Yu-ching and two youngsters, Sophie Wu and Fan Linna, stunned fourth seeds Zhejiang in the quarter-finals 42-41. They then lost to top seeds Fukien 45-33 in the next round to compete in the play-off for the bronze against Shaanxi.

The Hong Kong women were leading the hosts until midway in the bout before losing 45-36.

“We have never made it to the top four in women’s team foil at the National Games before,” said the coach. “We came here mainly as a learning experience with two junior players in the squad. In the quarter-finals, we came close to losing against Zhejiang but the girls fought back tremendously from 38-32 down to win the match. Regardless of the final result, their attitude, their fighting spirit and their determination spoke volumes.”

Coach Zhang Han and his two fencers, Yeung Chi-ka (left) and Ryan Choi. Photo: Chinese Fencing Association
Coach Zhang Han and his two fencers, Yeung Chi-ka (left) and Ryan Choi. Photo: Chinese Fencing Association

In beach volleyball, Kong Cheuk-yi and To Wing-tung lost their women’s final group match to Hainan 2-0 while their men’s counterparts suffered the same defeat, also to Hainan. Both teams fail to reach the knockout stage although the men’s still have one last group match against Shaanxi.

Hong Kong’s track and field campaign also kicked off on Monday but none of the city’s sprinters were able to go beyond the heats in the men’s and women’s 100 metres. The women’s high jump will start on Tuesday with Cecilia Yeung Man-wai, Cheung Ching-laam and Tiffany Tang Yi-ching all taking to the field.