THE WAY TO GET WELL
The city’s aspiring fence association was established in 1949, many years ago when Hong Kong was a British settlement.
Earlier in the 2000s, the city experienced sporadic success, but it wasn’t until the 2010 Asian Games, where Hong Kong athletes won seven awards that they truly became a provincial powerhouse.
In the past 20 years, local organizers have worked to popularize the game by bringing classes to schools and community centers, which is where Cheung first encountered fence.
Athletes also benefited from a change to Hong Kong’s skills line that allowed Cheung to give himself to the game full-time when he was 17 with his parents’ approval.
Hundreds of spectators flocked to a Hong Kong store to see Cheung’s last match at the Tokyo Olympics, popping prosecco corks after he won.
Days later, Carrie Lam, the then-citizen of Hong Kong, announced increased revenue for prestigious athletes, including the addition of a fence hall to the facility where Cheung trains.
Although observers claim involvement has since fairly decreased, fencing schools reported a rise in applications.
ADVICE FOR THE STAR MAN
Gregory Koenig, who had recently coached in both Taiwan and his native France, started collaborating with Hong Kong’s sportsmen five years ago and has since gotten to know Cheung well.
The star man of Hong Kong, who has dropped to sixth in the men’s foil world rankings, received a warning from him.
It’s pretty difficult to be an Olympic champion because everyone is watching you and fighting tight against you, according to Koenig.
You must realize that many people fight their entire lives to achieve the target you have previously attained, he said to Cheung.
Do you think you’ve reached your breaking point and want to prevent here, then? Are you still inspired to do more, or what? According to Koenig, he told Cheung.
I really want to put my name in the story of fence, he told me.