(Tokoname [Japan] = Yonhap News) Reporter Choi Song-ah = Men's saber, the main sport of Korean fencing, announced its era by winning the team event for the fourth time in a row at the Asian Games.
The men's saber team, consisting of Oh Sang-wook, Park Sang-won (Daejeon Metropolitan City Hall), Do Gyeong-dong (Daegu Metropolitan City Hall), and Hwang Hee-geun (Armed Forces Athletic Corps), won the championship by defeating Japan 45-44 in the men's saber team final of the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games held at the Aichi Sky Expo in Tokoname, Aichi Prefecture, Japan on the 26th.
As a result, Korea won gold medals in the men's saber team event at the Asian Games for the fourth time in a row, following Incheon in 2014, Jakarta and Palembang in 2018, and Hangzhou in 2022 in 2023.
Men's saber is an event that leads the golden age of Korean fencing, and is showing off its power to the point where it has maintained its supremacy in the team competition three times in a row, starting with the 2012 London Games and ending in Paris in 2024 at the Olympics. For this reason, the men's saber team is given the nickname 'Appengers', which is a combination of fencing and 'Avengers'.
In Incheon, Oh Eun-seok, Won Woo-young, Kim Jeong-hwan, and Koo Bon-gil teamed up for the gold medal, and in Jakarta and Hangzhou, Kim Jeong-hwan, Koo Bon-gil, Kim Jun-ho, and Oh Sang-wook won back-to-back championships.
After the Hangzhou Asian Games, Kim Jeong-hwan and Kim Jun-ho laid down their national flags, and at the Paris Olympics, the 'New Appengers' were formed, with Oh Sang-wook, Koo Bon-gil, Park Sang-won, and Do Gyeong-dong. Before this Games, Koo Bon-gil also announced his retirement from the national team, and the 'Younger Appengers', whose average age had decreased significantly, emerged.
Oh Sang-wook, who turns 30 on the 30th, competed in an international competition for the first time as the eldest member of the national team, Do Gyeong-dong is 27, Park Sang-won is 26, and Hwang Hee-geun is 23.
Following the Hangzhou Asian Games and Paris Olympics, Oh Sang-wook led the team as captain and won two gold medals at this tournament, further solidifying his image as the 'Saber Emperor'.
Oh Sang-wook, who is 192 cm tall and has a physique comparable to that of Western players, and is called the 'monster fencer' due to his strength, flexibility, and speed, suffered from a back injury ahead of this tournament, but overcame even that. In particular, in the team finals, when they were on the verge of defeat with a score of 41-44, they showed off their power by scoring four consecutive points to achieve a comeback victory.
Here, juniors with different strengths supported each other and created a new 'golden breath'.
Do Gyeong-dong, who was a reserve athlete at the Paris Olympics but was suddenly brought in as a substitute in the finals of the team event and drew attention for his outstanding performance, showed signs of growth afterward and even took second place in the individual event at this year's World Championships, preparing to step up as a 'top two' with Oh Sang-wook. Although he was eliminated in the quarterfinals of this tournament's individual event and gave up the lead to Japan in the team finals, he faltered, but he will use this as a helpful experience.
Likewise, Park Sang-won, a gold medalist in the team event at the Paris Olympics, has overwhelming speed and good power, forming a strong team with Do Gyeong-dong. After the lead was handed over to Japan in the final on this day, they were pushed down to 4 points in the 8th round, but narrowed it down to 1 point and passed the baton to Oh Sang-wook, laying the foundation for a comeback victory.
Candidate Hwang Hee-geun, whose strength is his energetic attack, failed to participate in the finals, but contributed to history in his first Asian Games and achieved 'early discharge'.
With another natural generational change taking place, the men's saber team also expressed hope to maintain its supremacy at the Los Angeles (LA) Olympics, which is two years away.
SBS commentator Koo Bon-gil, who has won the men's saber event three times in the Asian Games and three times in the team event, and holds the record for the most gold medals (6) for a Korean player, said, "Seeing how Oh Sang-wook played his first Asian Games as the eldest member of the national team and led his juniors well to overcome difficulties and achieve 4 consecutive wins in the team event, I am confident that Korean saber will continue its history at the Olympics."
