The Korean men’s fencing team struck gold in the team event.
The team of Lee Kwang-hyun (Hwaseong City Hall), Ha Tae-gyu (Korea Gymnastics University), Heo Jun (Gwangju City Hall), and Lim Chul-woo (Seongbuk District Office) defeated China 45-38 in the team final of the Hangzhou 2022 Asian Games at the China Electronics University Gymnasium on Sunday.
This was the second consecutive team title for the men’s flechettes after they won their first team title in 24 years at the previous Asian Games in Jakarta-Palembang. It was also the first time in 45 years that Sumo had won an individual gold medal in the team event.
South Korea reached the final with relative ease, knocking off Chinese Taipei (45-29) in the quarterfinals and Hong Kong (45-37) in the fourth. Facing the Chinese, who were cheered on by their home fans, South Korea, with Lee Kwang-hyun as their number one runner, struggled a bit with the Chinese pressure early on.
Lee Kwang-hyun started well, taking the first two points against Chen Haiwei, but at 4-5, he passed the baton to He Jun. Grabbing the sword, Heo Jun attacked with a shuze, but the score was only slightly wider at 7-10. The Koreans were unable to close the gap until the third round, when Ha Tae-gyu took over.
The prelude to the comeback came in the fourth round when Lee Kwang-hyun came back on top. Taking over from 11-15, Lee Kwang-hyun scored seven points against Xu Ze to close the gap to 18-20. In the sixth game, ace Heo Jun put on a one-man show. He pulled down six points against Wu Bing to tip the scales in China’s favor. For the first time in the game, China even managed to create an upset, opening the door for the second half at 27-27.
Once the game was balanced, it didn’t tip in either direction. They traded points until the 33rd point. Lee Kwang-hyun threw cold water on the Chinese cheering. He continued his attack in the eighth round and ran away with it, giving himself a comfortable 40-36 lead. It was Heo Jun who put the finishing touches. He had to sit on the piste in the final round due to leg pain, but he was able to extend his lead and win 45-38.
The gold medal was especially gratifying for the national team, as the previous individual events saw Lee Kwang-hyun crash out in the quarterfinals and Lim Chul-woo lose in the round of 16. This was quite a shock for the Korean fencers, who had always finished on the podium in the men’s individual foil competition in nine consecutive tournaments, dating back to Seoul 1986.
The fact that Korean fencing had struck gold on three consecutive days only added to the excitement. Starting with Injeong Choi’s victory in the women’s epee on the first day, the fencers went on a gold medal streak in the men’s sabre (Oh Sang-wook) and women’s sabre (Yoon Ji-soo).
The men’s foil team came from behind to win their second consecutive medal in the team event, securing the podium. 메이저사이트
The women’s epée team of Injeong Choi (Gyeryong City Hall), Sera Song (Busan Metropolitan Government), Youngmi Kang (Gwangju City Hall) and Hyein Lee (Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province) also defeated China to reach the final, where they will face Hong Kong for gold.