World Fencing Championships: Hong Kong fall short against United States but secure fifth-place finish in team foil
- Men’s team match their best result at Worlds from three years ago, beating Canada and South Korea after quarter-final disappointment
- ‘We had some breakthroughs, and I hope that all of our fencers will continue to grow,’ coach Zheng Kangzhao says in Cairo
Hong Kong men’s foil team missed out on a podium spot after being outplayed by the United States in their World Championships quarter-final on Saturday in Cairo.
The loss, however, did not deter Hong Kong from battling hard in the play-offs, where they overcame Canada 45-29 and South Korea 45-32 to finish fifth overall.
The result matched their best ever finish in the team event at a World Championships from three years earlier in Budapest, when the squad featured Cheung Siu-lun, and Yeung Chi-ka, as well as Cheung Ka-long and Ryan Choi.
After defeating China 45-40 and Austria 45-34 in the first two rounds of the team event on Friday, the city’s squad of Cheung Ka-long, Ryan Choi Chun-yin, Nicholas Choi, and Lawrence Ng Lok-wang faced defending champions and world No 3 side the USA, where Cheung fell 5-2 to Alexander Massialas in the first bout.
The only victory over the Americans came in the second round, when world No 8 Ryan Choi defeated American Nick Itkin 8-4 to establish a 10-9 lead, but Hong Kong failed to extend their advantage for the rest of the match and eventually lost 45-35.
The top four teams in the world all advanced to the semi-finals, where No 1 Italy outplayed Japan to secure a 45-30 win, while the US narrowly defeated No 2 France 45-44.
The fifth-place play-offs saw a rematch of last month’s regional Asian Championships semi-final, where Hong Kong fell to South Korea 42-45. This time, however, the city’s side led all the way to the finish, defeating world No 10 Korea 45-32.
“To be honest, today’s outcome against the US was usual – the US fencers’ levels are extremely even,” head coach Zheng Kangzhao said. “They’ve all won world cup and world championship medals previously. We were the underdogs a little bit this time, but I’m pleased with their effort.”
With two individual bronzes secured by Olympic champion Cheung and former world No 1 Vivian Kong Man-wai, Hong Kong enjoyed their best ever medal haul from a World Championships.
“We had some breakthroughs at this Worlds, and I noticed some improvements in some fencers, and I hope that all of our fencers will continue to grow. This is a positive indication in Cairo,” coach Zheng said.