Jaelyn Liu
It was a masterclass in the Junior Women’s Foil event at the Rio 2026 Junior & Cadet Fencing World Championships, as reigning champion Jaelyn Liu successfully defended her crown.
The USA’s Junior World Number 1 Jaelyn entered the tournament with a strong history in the city, having previously claimed a senior Pan American bronze medal in Rio.
Her campaign to retain the title she first won in Wuxi began with a formidable performance in the preliminary pools, earning her the second seed for the direct elimination stages. While she faced a significant challenge in the round of 32 against Poland’s Hanna Wojtas, securing a 13-10 victory, Jaelyn hit her stride in the round of 16. There, she decisively defeated Uzbekistan’s Polina Volobueva, a bronze medallist from the 2025 Junior World Championships, with a score of 15-7.
Jaelyn’s road to the final was nearly halted in the semi-finals by Korea’s Shin Minchae, the 2025 Asian Championships silver medallist. In a tense encounter, Jaelyn edged past Shin 15-14 to secure her place in the gold medal bout. Facing the current Asian Champion and World No. 5, Zhu Linlin of China, Jaelyn finally unleashed her peak form. She dominated the final from start to finish, retaining her world title with a commanding 15-4 victory.
Linlin earned the silver medal after navigating an exceptionally difficult draw. Despite high seeds falling early in the day, the fifth-ranked Linlin remained composed, recording impressive 15-9 victories over Moldova’s World number 4, Adeline Senic in the round of 16 and Korea’s 2025 Cadet silver medallist Jo Juhyun in the quarterfinals. Although she was ultimately outfenced by Linlin in the final, her performance solidified her standing as one of the weapon’s premier competitors.
The podium was completed by Korean teammates Shin Minchae and Jo Juhyun, who both claimed bronze medals. Their double-podium finish continues a long-standing tradition of excellence for the Korean foil program, which has consistently produced top-tier talent since the early 2000s, including historical medallists such as Park Hee-Kyung and Lee Seung-Wong.
Ho Long shines for Hong Kong
The Carioca Arena bore witness to a historic performance in the Men’s Junior Foil event. Hong Kong’s Lam Ho Long, ranked 20th in the Junior World rankings, produced the best fencing of his career to claim the gold medal, emulating the legendary feat of his countryman and two-time Olympic Champion, Cheung Ka Long, who secured the same Junior World title in 2017.
Ho Long’s path to the gold required him to dismantle a field of the world’s elite fencers. His remarkable run included a 15-13 victory over World No. 3 Amir Fakhretdinov of Russia and a dominant 15-6 semi-final win against Italy’s World No. 4, Mattia Di Cristofaro. In the final, Ho Long faced the reigning World Champion, Abdelrahman Tolba of Egypt. Ho Long set a blistering pace from the opening exchange, storming ahead to complete his championship-winning performance in just 1 minute and 30 seconds.
The silver medal was awarded to Egypt’s Abdelrahman Tolba, the Junior World No. 2 and Senior World No. 10. Despite a shaky start in the preliminary pools, the defending champion found his rhythm in the direct elimination stages.
Tolba showed his championship mettle in the quarterfinals, coming from behind to defeat Great Britain’s 2026 Junior European Champion and World No. 7, David Sosnov, with a 15-13 scoreline. He followed this with a 15-10 semi-final victory over Italy’s Emanuele Iaquinta before falling to Ho Long in the gold medal bout.
Italy again demonstrated the incredible depth of its foil program by occupying both remaining spots on the podium. World No. 1 and consistent World Cup podium finisher Emanuele Iaquinta claimed a bronze medal, sharing the third-place step with his teammate, World No. 4 Mattia Di Cristofaro. The Italian double-podium finish adds to a long-standing tradition of excellence in the weapon, continuing a legacy of success seen in previous years by fencers such as Tommaso Marini and Damiano Di Veroli.
