Latest news with #ShanghaiGrandPrix
South China Morning Post
24-07-2025
- Sport
- South China Morning Post
New fencing star Ryan Choi gives Hong Kong a victory to savour
Hong Kong is revelling in a golden era for fencing, with one historic win after another. The sport has enjoyed a boom since Cheung Ka-long secured the city's first fencing Olympic gold medal in Tokyo in 2021. Cheung repeated the feat at the Paris Games last year, where Vivian Kong Man-wai also won gold. Now there is a new star to celebrate. Advertisement Ryan Choi Chun-yin is the first Hong Kong fencer to be the world champion . He won the foil final in Georgia on Wednesday. It is an outstanding achievement. The victory has catapulted Choi to the world No 1 spot. The 27-year-old described it as a dream come true. His triumph should act as an inspiration, conveying a powerful message that you should keep believing in your ability and never give up. Choi was 'desperate' after failing to qualify for the Paris Olympics and enduring a deeply disappointing run of results, including elimination in early rounds. He was on the verge of abandoning the rest of the season, but was persuaded to persevere by his coach. The fencer, to his great credit, has engineered a spectacular turnaround . He won the Shanghai Grand Prix in May and then the Asian Championships in Bali last month. The confidence gained from these victories propelled him to the world title. Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism Rosanna Law Shuk-pui congratulated Choi, saying: 'We are thrilled.' His landmark win underscores the need for Hong Kong to keep its foot firmly on the accelerator as it seeks to build on recent sporting successes, ensuring elite athletes have sufficient funding, facilities and coaching. Choi sparked debate last year when he posted details of the expenses incurred by entry-level elite athletes when attending international tournaments. Support is needed for up and coming talent, not just those who have won top tournaments. Advertisement The future for fencing is bright and other sports can learn from it, notably the hiring of top coaches from overseas. The cycling team is following this example.
RTHK
24-07-2025
- Sport
- RTHK
Ryan Choi aims for Olympic medal after fencing success
Ryan Choi aims for Olympic medal after fencing success Ryan Choi defeated Russia's Kirill Borodachev in the men's foil final in Tbilisi, Georgia. Photo courtesy of the Fencing Association of Hong Kong, China. Achieving his dream of becoming the world's top-ranked fencer as a full-time athlete, Ryan Choi has now set a new goal of medalling at the Olympics, or once again at the World Championships. The 27-year-old has made history for Hong Kong, China, clinching its first-ever Fencing World Championships gold. Choi defeated Russia's Kirill Borodachev 15-9 in the men's foil final in Tbilisi, Georgia, an experience he described as a career milestone. "It feels so surreal because I haven't lost a match in the past three consecutive competitions. Honestly, when I first started fencing, I never thought I'd be able to achieve this," Choi said in a video posted on social media by the Fencing Association of Hong Kong, China. "After I won first place at the Shanghai Grand Prix, and then followed by a first-place win at the Asian Championships, I already felt like I could retire." "So I'm going to take really good care of [this medal]." The association also congratulated the SAR athlete on his historic win for the city. Aside from the world championship title, Choi was also given prize money of US$40,000. He will compete in the team foil event later in the competition.
RTHK
24-07-2025
- Sport
- RTHK
Ryan Choi aims for Olympic medal after fencing success
Ryan Choi aims for Olympic medal after fencing success Ryan Choi defeated Russia's Kirill Borodachev in the men's foil final in Tbilisi, Georgia. Photo courtesy of the Fencing Association of Hong Kong, China. Achieving his dream of becoming the world's top-ranked fencer as a full-time athlete, Ryan Choi has now set a new goal of medalling at the Olympics, or once again at the World Championships. The 27-year-old has made history for Hong Kong, China, clinching its first-ever Fencing World Championships gold. Choi defeated Russia's Kirill Borodachev 15-9 in the men's foil final in Tbilisi, Georgia, an experience he described as a career milestone. "It feels so surreal because I haven't lost a match in the past three consecutive competitions. Honestly, when I first started fencing, I never thought I'd be able to achieve this," Choi said in a video posted on social media by the Fencing Association of Hong Kong, China. "After I won first place at the Shanghai Grand Prix, and then followed by a first-place win at the Asian Championships, I already felt like I could retire." "So I'm going to take really good care of [this medal]." The association also congratulated the SAR athlete on his historic win for the city. Aside from the world championship title, Choi was also given prize money of US$40,000. He will compete in the team foil event later in the competition.
South China Morning Post
21-05-2025
- Sport
- South China Morning Post
‘Desperate' Hong Kong fencer Ryan Choi almost abandoned season before Shanghai glory
Hong Kong fencer Ryan Choi Chun-yin has targeted further success on the back of his breakthrough triumph at the weekend – but revealed he almost skipped the event after a wretched run of results left him ready to write off the year. Foilist Choi outsmarted former world champion Tommaso Marini 15-12 in the Shanghai Grand Prix on Sunday to win his first senior individual international title. Choi's maiden win almost did not happen as the left-hander revealed he thought about skipping the rest of the season after missing out on the main draw of the World Cup in Vancouver earlier this month, adding to the disappointment of not qualifying for the Paris Olympic Games last July. However, coach Maurizio Zomparelli managed to talk him out of the idea. Ryan Choi hugs coach Maurizio Zomparelli after his Shanghai Grand Prix win on Sunday. Photo: FIE 'I didn't play well in any tournament after failing to qualify for Paris – it was not regression on my part but a case of results not reflecting my improvement,' said Choi, who saw his latest rankings climb 15 spots to world No 17. 'I was desperate and wanted to bring the curtain down on the season. 'I didn't lose because of any technical issues but some external factors that discouraged me, but coach [Zamparelli] persuaded me to go on.'
South China Morning Post
27-04-2025
- Automotive
- South China Morning Post
Meet Formula One driver Alex Albon: the Thai-British racer is a Michael Schumacher fan, loves animals, is dating golfer Lily Muni He – and he's helping Williams Racing regain their F1 status
Formula One driver Alex Albon has had an encouraging start to his 2025 season. Williams' Thai-British driver Alex Albon in the paddock before the recent Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai. Photo: EPA-EFE The Williams racer put in an impressive drive to secure a solid fifth position at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, in Melbourne, on March 16. He followed it up with seventh place at the Shanghai Grand Prix on March 23 – his 29th birthday. Advertisement After a break in Bangkok with girlfriend Lily Muni He, the Thai-British driver secured his third top-10 finish of the season by finishing ninth at Suzuka in Japan, but slipped to 12th the following weekend in Bahrain. However he finished ninth again at the Saudi Arabian GP on April 20, one place behind his Spanish teammate Carlos Sainz , both scoring important points which helped move the Williams team up to fifth in the Constructor's Championship. But who is Alex Albon, the driver helping to steer Williams back to their glory days? What's his background? Albon was born Alexander Albon Ansusinha on March 23, 1996 in London, to Nigel Albon and Kankamol Albon, says F1 Oversteer. He has three sisters, Chloe, Zoe and Alicia and a brother, Luca. Albon's dad is a former racing driver, but Alex developed his taste for speed when he went to his first Formula One race, at Silverstone, England, aged five. His start in motorsport
