The South Korean fencing team concluded the individual events at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games without adding any medals on the final day. All four competitors in women's sabre and men's épée failed to reach the semifinals, leaving South Korea with two gold medals, one silver, and one bronze in individual events.
In the women's sabre quarterfinals held on September 24 at the Aichi Sky Expo in Tokoname, Jeon Ha-young (Seoul City Hall) lost to China's Lao Xueyi with a score of 11-15.
Ranked 11th in the world, Jeon was considered a medal contender among Asian athletes but could not overcome the 23rd-ranked Lao.
Jeon advanced to the round of 32 with a bye and defeated Shreya Gupta (India) 15-6 in the round of 16. She initially led 8-3 in the quarterfinals but allowed a series of points to slip away in the second half, resulting in her defeat.
Kim Jeong-mi (Ansan City Hall), who competed alongside Jeon, was eliminated in the round of 16 after losing 5-15 to Summer Pei Sit (Hong Kong).
No medals were earned in men's épée either. Jang Hyo-min (Ulsan City Hall) reached the quarterfinals but lost a close match to Hong Kong's Pong Hoi-sin, 12-13, in overtime, ending his hopes for a semifinal spot.
Park Sang-young (Ulsan City Hall), the gold medalist in men's épée at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics, also fell short in the round of 16, losing 13-15 to Zhang Xinkun (China).
After winning a silver medal in the individual event at the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Games, Park returned to the Asian Games stage for the first time in eight years but was unable to secure a medal in the individual events this time.
With the individual events wrapping up after three days of competition starting on September 22, South Korea secured gold medals from Song Se-ra in women's épée and Oh Sang-wook in men's sabre, along with a silver from Park Ji-hee in women's foil and a bronze from Yoon Jeong-hyun in men's foil.
Compared to the six medals (three gold, two silver, and one bronze) won at the 2023 Hangzhou Games, the total for individual events decreased to four.
The South Korean fencing team will resume its quest for medals in the team events starting on September 25, with men's foil and women's épée competitions taking place on the first day. Song Se-ra, who won gold in the individual event, will aim for a second title in the women's épée team event.
South Korea will also seek to reclaim gold in the men's foil, women's épée, and men's sabre team events, all of which they won at the Hangzhou Games.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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