Hong Kong women's foil representatives Daphne Chan and Janelle Leung both advanced to the round of 32 at the Kerry Fencing World Championships 2026 at AsiaWorld-Expo on Monday, gaining valuable experience against top-ranked opponents on home soil.
Chan, ranked 19th in the world, survived a tense 64th-round encounter against South Korea's Mo Byeoli (world No 21), coming from 14-12 down to win 15-14 in a sudden-death decider . She then lost 15-5 to former European Championships silver medallist Carolina Stutchbury of the United States in the last 32 .
“I felt less nervous than in the qualification round and I enjoyed both matches,” Chan said. “I learned a lot from the experience. During the sudden-death moment, I didn’t think too much, just focused on winning one point at a time, and that helped me forget my nerves” .
Leung, making her world championship debut, beat China's Zhang Siqi 15-12 in the first round before losing 15-3 to world No 3 Ueno Yuka of Japan .
“Before the tournament I didn’t set a target. I just wanted to give my best performance and stay true to my training,” said Leung, who has taken a break from her Chinese medicine studies at Hong Kong Baptist University to compete this season . “Every match at this world championship has been a great lesson. The sudden-death moments taught me that the match is never over until the last point.”
Both fencers said they enjoyed the support of family and friends in the stands, and are now looking ahead to Thursday's team event, where they will join teammates Valerie Cheng and Leung Ying-kiu. They aim to improve on the team's best result in the past decade – 11th place – and target a top-eight finish .
