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Vivian Kong

In this Hong Kong name, the surname is Kong. In accordance with Hong Kong custom, the Western-style name is Vivian Kong and the Chinese-style name is Kong Man-wai.

Vivian Kong Man-wai
Kong in 2024 with her Olympic gold medal
Personal information
NicknameSmiling Queen of Fencing (微笑劍后)[1][2][3]
Born (1994-02-08) 8 February 1994 (age 30)
Hong Kong
Weight66 kg (146 lb)
Sport
SportFencing
EventÉpée
Turned pro2013
Coached byOctavian Zidaru
Medal record
Women's épée
Representing  Hong Kong
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 2024 Paris Individual
World Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2019 Budapest Individual
Bronze medal – third place 2022 Cairo Individual
Asian Games
Silver medal – second place 2022 Hangzhou Team
Bronze medal – third place 2014 Incheon Individual
Bronze medal – third place 2014 Incheon Team
Bronze medal – third place 2018 Jakarta Individual
Bronze medal – third place 2018 Jakarta Team
Bronze medal – third place 2022 Hangzhou Individual
Asian Championships
Gold medal – first place 2018 Bangkok Individual
Gold medal – first place 2022 Seoul Individual
Gold medal – first place 2023 Wuxi Individual
Silver medal – second place 2017 Hong Kong Individual
Silver medal – second place 2018 Bangkok Team
Silver medal – second place 2022 Seoul Team
Silver medal – second place 2023 Wuxi Team
Bronze medal – third place 2011 Seoul Team
Bronze medal – third place 2014 Suwon Team
Bronze medal – third place 2015 Singapore Team
Bronze medal – third place 2016 Wuxi Team
Bronze medal – third place 2017 Hong Kong Team
Bronze medal – third place 2019 Chiba Team
Kong Man Wai
Chinese江旻憓
Cantonese Yalegōng màhn waih
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinJiāng Mínhuì
Yue: Cantonese
Yale Romanizationgōng màhn waih
Jyutpinggong1 man4 wai6

Vivian Kong Man Wai MH (Chinese: 江旻憓; Jyutping: gong1 man4 wai6; born 8 February 1994) is a Hong Kong left-handed épée fencer. A three-time individual Asian champion and three-time Olympian, she won gold in women's individual épée at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.[4][5][6]

Early life

Kong was born in Hong Kong but lived in Canada between the ages of two and six.[7] Before taking up fencing, she variously forayed into ballet and taekwondo. She started fencing at the age of eleven and chose épée, stating it "combined the speed of taekwondo and the grace of ballet".[8]

Education

Kong completed her secondary studies at Sha Tin College and graduated from Stanford University with a Bachelor of Arts in international relations.[9] As of 2024, she is studying for a Juris Doctor degree at the Faculty of Law at The Chinese University of Hong Kong and aspires to work for the United Nations.[10] Kong has taken a sabbatical to prepare for the Olympics and had previously declined an offer to represent Canada.[8]

Career

Kong competed in the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games and the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. She became the first fencer from Hong Kong to win a World Cup title when she won the FIE Women's Épée World Cup in Havana, Cuba in January 2019.[11]

Kong won one of the bronze medals in the Women's épée at the 2022 World Fencing Championships held in Cairo, Egypt.[12]

In the women's épée event at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, Kong defeated Olena Kryvytska in the quarterfinals and Nelli Differt in the semifinals. In the finals, she overcame a 1–7 deficit against Auriane Mallo to win 13–12, securing Hong Kong's third-ever Olympic gold medal.[13] She was the first Hong Kong athlete to win a gold medal at the 2024 Olympics.[14]

On 4 August 2024, Kong announced on Instagram that she would retire from professional fencing and stated that she looks forward to pursuing a "new career".[15] On 6 August, a Facebook post by Raymond Tam announced that Kong would join the Hong Kong Jockey Club to promote sports development.[16]

Impact

Following Kong's and Cheung Ka Long's gold-medal victories at the 2024 Olympic Games, fencing schools in Hong Kong reported a significant increase in public interest.[17] This was predominantly driven by parents seeking opportunities for their children, though a portion of enquiries also came from adults.[18]

Medal record

Olympic Games

Year Location Event Position
2024 France Paris, France Individual Women's Épée 1st[19]

World Championship

Year Location Event Position
2019 Hungary Budapest, Hungary Individual Women's Épée 3rd[20]
2022 Egypt Cairo, Egypt Individual Women's Épée 3rd[21]

Grand Prix

Date Location Event Position
2017-05-26 Colombia Bogotá, Colombia Individual Women's Épée 2nd[22]
2023-01-29 Qatar Doha, Qatar Individual Women's Épée 3rd[23]
2023-05-07 Colombia Cali, Colombia Individual Women's Épée 1st[24]
2024-01-31 Qatar Doha, Qatar Individual Women's Épée 1st[25]

World Cup

Date Location Event Position
2014-07-02 Germany Leipzig, Germany Individual Women's Épée 3rd[26]
2016-05-20 Italy Legnano, Italy Individual Women's Épée 3rd[27]
2018-01-19 Cuba Havana, Cuba Individual Women's Épée 3rd[28]
2018-09-11 Estonia Tallinn, Estonia Individual Women's Épée 2nd[29]
2019-11-01 Cuba Havana, Cuba Individual Women's Épée 1st[30]
2019-08-02 Spain Barcelona, Spain Individual Women's Épée 1st[31]
2019-05-17 United Arab Emirates Dubai, United Arab Emirates Individual Women's Épée 3rd[32]
2022-12-10 Canada Vancouver, Canada Individual Women's Épée 2nd[33]
2023-05-19 United Arab Emirates Fujairah, United Arab Emirates Individual Women's Épée 2nd[25]
2024-02-10 Spain Barcelona, Spain Individual Women's Épée 1st[25]
2024-05-18 United Arab Emirates Fujairah, United Arab Emirates Individual Women's Épée 1st[34]

Asian Championship

Year Location Event Position
2011 South Korea Seoul, South Korea Team Women's Épée 3rd
2014 South Korea Suwon, South Korea Team Women's Épée 3rd[35]
2015 Singapore Singapore Team Women's Épée 3rd
2016 China Wuxi, China Team Women's Épée 3rd[36]
2017 Hong Kong Hong Kong Individual Women's Épée 2nd[37]
2017 Hong Kong Hong Kong Team Women's Épée 3rd[37]
2018 Thailand Bangkok, Thailand Individual Women's Épée 1st[38]
2018 Thailand Bangkok, Thailand Team Women's Épée 2nd[39]
2019 Japan Chiba, Japan Team Women's Épée 3rd[40]
2022 South Korea Seoul, South Korea Individual Women's Épée 1st[41]
2022 South Korea Seoul, South Korea Team Women's Épée 2nd[42]
2023 China Wuxi, China Individual Women's Épée 1st[43]
2023 China Wuxi, China Team Women's Épée 2nd[43]

References

  1. ^ Dimsumdaily Hong Kong (28 July 2024). "Olympic champion Vivian Kong's vegetarian diet fuels her journey to gold". Dimsum Daily. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
  2. ^ "「微笑劍后」江旻憓凱旋歸港 稱冀與更多人分享喜悅". on.cc東網 (in Chinese (Hong Kong)). 1 August 2024. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
  3. ^ 吳慕兒 (28 July 2024). "江旻憓奧運奪金｜微笑劍后笑與淚交織港隊首金 真情流露傻話連篇". 香港01 (in Chinese (Hong Kong)). Retrieved 1 August 2024.
  4. ^ "INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website". FIE.org. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  5. ^ "Fencing Results Book" (PDF). 2018 Asian Games. Archived (PDF) from the original on 8 May 2020. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
  6. ^ "Vivian Kong". Rio 2016. Archived from the original on 6 August 2016. Retrieved 6 August 2016.
  7. ^ Chan, Mike. "Paris Olympics: who is fencer Vivian Kong? Hong Kong's latest gold medallist has been chasing history since she was 11". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
  8. ^ a b "重劍女神江旻憓 穿梭於跆拳道與芭蕾舞之間 - 明周文化". 12 February 2019. Archived from the original on 12 February 2019. Retrieved 27 July 2024.
  9. ^ "Vivian Kong". Stanford Cardinal - Official Athletics Website. Retrieved 3 August 2024.
  10. ^ Standard, The. "A winner on, off the piste". The Standard. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
  11. ^ "Fencing star Vivian Kong makes history for Hong Kong by taking gold at World Cup in Cuba". South China Morning Post/Sports. 13 January 2019. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  12. ^ Lloyd, Owen (18 July 2022). "Szilágyi and Song take historic wins at Fencing World Championships". InsideTheGames.biz. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
  13. ^ "Paris Olympics day 1: Vivian Kong takes sensational gold in women's epee". South China Morning Post. 27 July 2024. Retrieved 27 July 2024.
  14. ^ "Fencer Vivian Kong Secures Hong Kong's First Gold Medal at Paris Olympics 2024". 30 July 2024.
  15. ^ 星島日報 (4 August 2024). "巴黎奧運︱江旻憓宣布告別全職劍擊運動員生涯 盼新職業發展回饋香港". std.stheadline.com (in Chinese). Retrieved 4 August 2024.
  16. ^ Lee, James (7 August 2024). "Olympic fencing gold medallist Vivian Kong to join Hong Kong Jockey Club". Hong Kong Free Press. Retrieved 7 August 2024.
  17. ^ "劍校查詢急增 「旻憓效應」料吸女生 - 20240731 - 要聞". 明報新聞網 - 每日明報 daily news (in Traditional Chinese). Retrieved 1 August 2024.
  18. ^ "巴黎奧運．香港代表｜江旻憓張家朗奪金效應 劍擊學校查詢數字急增". Yahoo News (in Chinese). 30 July 2024. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
  19. ^ "INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website". FIE.org. Retrieved 28 July 2024.
  20. ^ "INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website". FIE.org. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  21. ^ "INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website". FIE.org. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
  22. ^ "INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website". FIE.org. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  23. ^ "Grand Prix du Qatar". engarde-service. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
  24. ^ "Epee Grand Prix Senior Women's Épée". engarde-service. Retrieved 8 May 2023.
  25. ^ a b c "KONG Man Wai Vivian's Profile". FIE. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
  26. ^ "INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website". FIE.org. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  27. ^ "INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website". FIE.org. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  28. ^ "INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website". FIE.org. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  29. ^ "INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website". FIE.org. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  30. ^ "INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website". FIE.org. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  31. ^ "INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website". FIE.org. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  32. ^ "INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website". FIE.org. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  33. ^ "Vancouver World Cup Senior Women's Épée". fencingtimelive. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  34. ^ "World Cup Epee Women's Fujairah UAE". fencingtimelive. Retrieved 19 May 2024.
  35. ^ "INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website". FIE.org. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  36. ^ "INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website". FIE.org. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  37. ^ a b "INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website". FIE.org. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  38. ^ "INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website". FIE.org. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  39. ^ "INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website". FIE.org. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  40. ^ "INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website". FIE.org. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  41. ^ "INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website". FIE.org. Retrieved 11 June 2022.
  42. ^ "INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website". FIE.org. Retrieved 23 June 2022.
  43. ^ a b "2023 Asian Fencing Championships Senior Women's Épée". Fencing Time Live.
Quelle: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vivian_Kong