Hong Kong is one of the smaller Asian Games teams by population, but when it comes to fencing the SAR is a regional heavyweight.
Edgar Cheung Ka-long won gold at the Covid-delayed Tokyo Games two years ago - Hong Kong's first Olympic fencing title and first Olympic gold in any sport in a quarter of a century. It turned the 26-year-old into a celebrity overnight and prompted parents to rush and sign their children up for fencing classes.
With more funding and public attention as a result, Cheung and his teammates now hope to stamp their mark on the Asian Games in Hangzhou starting Saturday.
Despite a strong record at recent editions, including eight medals in the sport in 2018, Hong Kong is yet to win fencing gold at the Asian Games.
"No matter for individual or team events, I hope we can [win gold at last]," Cheung said.
The city will have 24 fencers, 12 women and 12 men, at the Games.
Another gold-medal contender is 29-year-old Vivian Kong, who is ranked number two in the world in women's epee. There is also Ryan Choi, who along with Cheung was part of the Hong Kong side that won bronze in team foil at the world championships in July.
Cheung said the Hong Kong team have "improved greatly" since the 2018 Games in Jakarta.
The left-hander has recovered from a recent wrist injury.
Fencing in the city stretches back decades, to when Hong Kong was a British colony, with its amateur fencing association founded in 1949.
The city had occasional success in the early 2000s, but it was at the 2010 Asian Games where Hong Kong established themselves as a regional powerhouse by winning seven medals.
Local organizers made efforts to popularize the sport, bringing classes to schools and community hubs, where Cheung had his first taste of fencing.
Fencers also benefited from a reform to the pipeline for discovering and training talent, which allowed Cheung to devote himself to the sport full-time when he was 17.
Gregory Koenig, who previously coached in his native France and also Taiwan, began working with Hong Kong's fencers five years ago and has developed a close relationship with Cheung.
He had a warning for Cheung, who has slipped to seventh in the men's foil world rankings. "When you're Olympic champion ... everybody has an eye on you and everybody's fighting hard against you," Koenig said.
He said he told Cheung: "You have to understand that many people fight all their life to reach the goal you've already reached."
"Okay, do you think you reached the maximum level and you want to stop here? Or are you still motivated for more?
"He told me, 'No, I really want to put my name in the history of fencing'."
Edgar Cheung
