Fencing prodigy Kaylin Hsieh Sin-yan hoping to crack world’s top 32 after LCSD Open triumph
- The 21-year-old wins her second consecutive tournament at Hong Kong Sports Park on Saturday with unbeaten run
- University of Notre Dame student is on a roll after double NCAA triumph in March, and targets more progress next season
Double NCAA champion Kaylin Hsieh Sin-yan hopes to rise into the world’s top 32 next season after winning her second consecutive tournament at the Hong Kong Park Sports Centre on Saturday.
The field for the women’s épée event at the LCSD Open Fencing Championships was wide open in the absence of regional champion and Worlds bronze medallist Vivian Kong Man-wai, and Hong Kong No 3 Hsieh duly went unbeaten in all six pool matches, earning straight entry to the round-of-32 as the top seed.
The 21-year-old Hsieh cruised through the first two rounds, but faced far sterner tests in the quarter-finals and semi-finals, where she edged out Moonie Chu Ka-mong and Chan Tsz-ching 15-14 and 14-13, respectively.
She then defeated Fong Sum 15-2 in the final, after the junior fencer had upset defending champion Coco Lin Yik-hei in the semis.
“There was a powerful hit on my face from Moonie during the quarters that made me feel slightly queasy and lose focus,” said Hsieh, who won the President’s Cup in June at the same venue.
“But I knew a first-place finish would be very crucial for me to enhance my local ranking, so I pulled myself together to win the next two rounds.”