Gold medallist and épéeist Vivian Kong Man-wai announced on Sunday her plan to “take a break” from professional fencing after nearly 20 years in the sport. However, veteran athletes predict the emergence of more stars as the city enters its “harvest period” and hope that authorities will build more facilities to better engage the public.
Experts said that Hong Kong’s historic success in fencing at the Paris Olympics is the culmination of decades of strategic planning and substantial investment in nurturing talent.
Kong and foilist Cheung Ka-long, who won two gold medals at the Olympics in Paris, triumphantly returned to the city, creating a frenzy of fencing similar to what happened three years ago when Cheung won his first gold in Tokyo.
Both athletes credited their success to the mentorship and inspiration of their forebears, who left a tradition of distinction in the field.
Kong said; “Since our generation has more resources than our elders did, we can afford to follow our aspirations. They accomplished tremendous things with less than half of what we have.”