Hong Kong, China men’s foil team came up just short of gold at the Asian Games on Friday, falling 36-45 to host Japan, in a tense final at the Aichi Sky Expo.

The silver medal matches Hong Kong’s best-ever result in the Asian Games men’s foil team event previously achieved at Jakarta-Palembang in 2018.

Japan, roared on by a home crowd, fielded a powerful lineup led by individual foil champion Kazuki Iimura and bronze medallist Kyosuke Matsuyama.

The hosts seized the lead early and never let it go.

Hong Kong’s youngest team member Harris Ho opened the final and trailed 1-5 early.

Two-time Olympic gold medallist Edgar Cheung and former world number one Ryan Choi then took the piste, but Hong Kong could not reel Japan in and trailed 11-20 after four bouts.

Hong Kong fought back in the middle section. Seventeen-year-old Ho produced a standout performance to cut the deficit to 20-25, and Cheung surged again in the seventh bout to keep Hong Kong within range at 32-35.

Japan, however, held firm. With Hong Kong trailing 34-40 going into the final bout, Ho anchored the last leg but could not close the gap.

Japan finished the job at 45-36 to claim gold on home soil.

In a TV interview with local media after the final, Ho said he did not consider his performance exceptional, adding that he felt he had not fenced to his usual standard.

"In the beginning, I was too nervous so I might have exerted too much energy. In the second half of the final, I felt I didn't have that much energy anymore. I will do more physical fitness when I go home," he said.

Meanwhile, Cheung and Choi both reflected on their performances after entering the competition with injuries.

Cheung said they fenced to the best of their abilities.

"We are a team. Whatever happens, we try to be considerate of each other and work hard together," said Cheung.

"I think we fell short in the beginning of the final. If we handled the beginning better, I think it would have been more comfortable for us. We did do a lot better in the second half, and we tried our best."

Choi, however, felt he didn't perform well and said he would reflect on his performance and train harder.




Edited by Azam Khan