The 2026 World Fencing Championships Just Ended—Here's Everything That Happened in Hong Kong
The 2026 World Fencing Championships ran from July 22 to July 30, 2026, at the AsiaWorld-Expo arena, right next to Hong Kong International Airport. Officially called the Kerry Fencing World Championships 2026, this was the 85th edition of the FIE Senior World Championships — and the very first time Hong Kong had hosted the full event, with all three weapons and both individual and team titles on the line.
More than a thousand fencers from over 100 nations came to fight for 12 gold medals. And by the time it ended, Hong Kong had already written a new page in its sporting history.
Grab a cup of tea, because this recap has drama, heartbreak, and one of the closest finals fencing has ever seen.
Chapter 1: Why Hong Kong, and Why It Mattered
Hong Kong hadn't hosted a major fencing event covering all three weapons since 2017. So why 2026?
The answer is simple: Hong Kong fencing was on fire. Going into the championships, Ryan Choi Chun-yin was the reigning World Champion in men's individual foil and ranked world No. 2. Edgar Cheung Ka-long, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, was right behind him. The city had also delivered a flawless Foil World Cup at the same venue back in 2024, which convinced the FIE (the International Fencing Federation) that Hong Kong was ready for the big stage.
The AsiaWorld-Expo arena, which seats around 7,000 fans, was packed for almost every session. Home support turned out to be one of the biggest stories of the whole championship—you'll see why in the next chapter.
Chapter 2: The Upset Nobody Saw Coming
Everyone expected Ryan Choi and Edgar Cheung to fight for the men's individual foil title on home soil. Instead, both were knocked out in the round of 16 on July 25.
Choi, ranked world No. 2, started well against Hungary's Daniel Dósa, jumping to a 4–2 lead. Then Dósa reeled off five straight points, and even though Choi fought back hard, cutting a big gap down to just one point, he couldn't complete the comeback and lost 13–15.
Cheung had an even tougher draw, facing world No. 1 Kirill Borodachev, and also fell short.
It was a quiet, stunned arena that night. Nobody expected the home favorites to fall so early. But fencing has a way of humbling even the best—and this is exactly the kind of moment that makes the sport so exciting to follow.
Chapter 3: Redemption — The Match Hong Kong Will Never Forget
Six days later, on July 28, Choi and Cheung got their chance to make it right—this time as a team.
The Hong Kong men's foil team, made up of Edgar Cheung, Ryan Choi, Harris Ho Shing-him, and Leung Chin-yu, fought their way to the final for the very first time in the country's history. They beat the United States 45–43 in a tense semi-final to book their spot.
Waiting for them in the gold medal match: world No. 1 Italy.
What followed was one of the most dramatic team finals in recent fencing memory. Hong Kong led for most of the bout—at one point by as many as eight points. Cheung opened strong. Choi held his ground. Then 17-year-old Harris Ho, competing in his first senior Worlds final, kept his composure against much more experienced Italian opponents.
But Italy's Tommaso Marini and Guillaume Bianchi refused to fold. Touch by touch, they clawed the gap back until the score was tied at 44–44 heading into a sudden-death final point.
Bianchi landed the winning touch. Italy took gold, 45–44.
It was heartbreaking for the home crowd but also historic. This silver medal is Hong Kong's best-ever finish at the World Fencing Championships, beating the bronze the team won back in 2023. Cheung called the defeat "regrettable" but said the team had shown real quality on the big stage.
Chapter 4: The Épée Final That Came Down to One Point
While the foil events grabbed home-crowd attention, the men's individual épée title had its own nail-biter.
In the gold medal match, France's Lucas Malcotti faced Italy's Davide Di Veroli. Épée bouts are already tense—unlike foil and sabre, fencers can score by hitting almost anywhere on the body, which makes for longer, more patient duels. This final lived up to that reputation, going all the way to 12–11 before Malcotti sealed the win.
If you enjoy close finishes, the men's épée individual final is one to look up in the replays.
Chapter 5: The Women's Events Delivered Just as Much Drama
While the men's foil final grabbed the headlines, the women's competitions in Hong Kong produced some of the best stories of the whole championships.
Women's foil ended in an all-Italian final, and it was a special one. Martina Favaretto, only 24, beat her own teammate Arianna Errigo 15–7 to win her first individual world title. For Errigo, the silver was still something to celebrate — at 38 years old, it was her 24th career World Championship medal, 17 years after her first back in 2009. Two legends of Italian fencing, on the same piste, in the same final.
Italy didn't stop there. A few days later, the same core group — Martina Batini, Martina Favaretto, Arianna Errigo, and Anna Cristino — beat the United States 45–29 to win the women's team foil title too. It was the 19th world title in the history of this famous Italian squad, nicknamed the "Dream Team" of foil.
Women's épée went the other way. South Korea's Song Se-ra, ranked world No. 4, edged out Italy's Giulia Rizzi 9–8 in a final decided by a single touch. It was Song's second individual world title, having also won gold in 2022 — only four fencers in history have managed that twice. Italy still walked away happy from this weapon overall, as their women's team went on to win the team épée gold a few days later.
Women's sabre produced the most emotional story of the individual events. Germany's Larissa Eifler, ranked world No. 10 and largely unknown outside fencing circles, won gold in the individual event — Germany's first individual World Championship gold since the legendary Peter Joppich in 2010. German newspapers called it a "sensational" and "historic" result, and it's easy to see why: nobody saw it coming.
In the women's team sabre final, Hungary's squad of Sugár Battai, Luca Szűcs, Anna Spiesz, and Renáta Katona beat China 45–41 after China led for much of the bout. China's silver still matched their best-ever finish in this event, first achieved back in 2003 — a strong result for a young team building toward the Asian Games.
Chapter 6: Foil, Épée, Sabre — A Quick Guide for New Fans
If some of these weapon names are new to you, here's the simple version:
- Foil: Light weapon, touches only count on the torso. Fast, technical, and full of small tactical decisions.
- Épée: Heavier weapon, touches count anywhere on the body. Slower pace, more patience, more mind games.
- Sabre: The fastest weapon of the three. Touches count above the waist, including arms and head. Bouts are explosive and often over in seconds.
Each weapon has a men's and women's individual event, plus a men's and women's team event—12 events in total, spread across nine days. Individual qualifying rounds ran from July 22–24, individual finals from July 25–27, and team events closed out the championships from July 28–30.
Chapter 7: Other Names Worth Knowing
Beyond the home favorites, a few other fencers made headlines in Hong Kong:
- Guillaume Bianchi (Italy) — landed the winning touch in the men's team foil final and was central to Italy's dramatic comeback.
- Tommaso Marini (Italy)—one of the world's most consistent foil fencers, he helped turn the team final around in the closing bouts.
- Lucas Malcotti (France) — new men's individual épée world champion after a 12–11 thriller.
- Lee Kiefer (USA) — the most decorated American fencer in history and reigning women's foil world champion, she came into Hong Kong as the fencer to beat in that event.
- Harris Ho Shing-him (Hong Kong) — just 17 years old, he became one of the youngest fencers to reach a senior Worlds final podium, and fans are already talking about him as one to watch at the Asian Games and beyond.
Chapter 8: What's Next
Hong Kong's fencing federation wasted no time looking ahead. Officials congratulated the team publicly and pointed straight to the next big target: the 20th Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, taking place this September 2026.
After a Worlds campaign with a historic silver medal and a rising young star in Harris Ho, expectations for Hong Kong fencing at the Asian Games just went up.
Chapter 9: The Final Medal Table
Once every event wrapped up, Italy came out on top of the overall medal table — no real surprise after that dramatic team foil final, but the numbers show just how dominant they were across the board.
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Italy | 4 | 4 | 0 | 8 |
| 2 | South Korea | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
| 3 | France | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| 4 | Hungary | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| 5 | Czech Republic | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 5 | Germany | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 5 | Kazakhstan | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 5 | Russia | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 5 | Switzerland | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 10 | China | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 10 | Ukraine | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 10 | United States | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 13 | Estonia | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 13 | Hong Kong | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 15 | Japan | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 |
| 16 | Egypt | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 16 | Romania | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 18 | Poland | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 18 | Saudi Arabia | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| — | Totals (19 entries) | 12 | 12 | 18 | 42 |
Hong Kong is the host nation.
A few things jump out from this table. Italy's four golds and four silvers across just 12 events is an exceptional haul—the men's team foil win over Hong Kong was one of four gold medals they picked up in Hong Kong. Japan didn't win a single gold or silver, but four bronze medals show real depth across their squad. And Hong Kong's silver—its first-ever team medal at a World Fencing Championships—is enough to put the host nation on the board at 13th overall, a solid result for a country making its debut as full host.
Chapter 10: How to Watch the Replays and Highlights
If you missed the live action, full match replays and highlights from the 2026 World Fencing Championships are available through FencingTV, the official streaming partner of the FIE. A free account is generally enough to browse recent sessions, though some archived matches may be limited by region.
For quick medal updates and full results by weapon and event, the FIE's official tournament page is the most reliable source, since it's updated directly by the organizers as each event finishes.
FAQ — 2026 World Fencing Championships
Where was the 2026 World Fencing Championships held?
How many events were there at the 2026 World Fencing Championships?
Who won the men's team foil gold medal?
Why were Ryan Choi and Edgar Cheung eliminated early in the individual foil event?
Who won the men's individual épée title?
France's Lucas Malcotti won gold, defeating Italy's Davide Di Veroli 12–11 in the final.
What is the difference between foil, épée, and sabre?
Where can I watch replays of the 2026 World Fencing Championships?
What's next for the Hong Kong fencing team?
Enjoyed this recap? Bookmark this page for more updates on Hong Kong fencing ahead of the Asian Games this September.