By JAMES ELLINGWORTH
PARIS (AP) — South Korean fencer Oh Sanguk held on against an opponent considered one of the greatest of all time to win his second gold medal of the Paris Olympics in men’s team saber on Wednesday.
Oh, a towering fencer nicknamed “Monster” by fans, closed out a 45-41 win for South Korea against Hungary and Aron Szilagyi, the only fencer to win three Olympic gold medals in a men’s individual fencing event.
“I was so happy that I had tears in my eyes. I was so overwhelmed by the emotions,” Oh said.
Oh and Szilagyi were the last two fencers to fight in the final of the team event, with Hungary 40-33 down and South Korea needing five more points for victory.
Szilagyi would have needed a heroic comeback for gold but scoring eight points to Oh’s five wasn’t enough as South Korea won team gold for the second Olympics in a row. South Korea also won in 2012; men’s team saber wasn’t on the program in 2016.
When Oh got the final touch he needed for the win, he struck a pose with his saber pointing to teammates Park Sangwon, Gu Bongil and Do Gyeongdong. Do was an alternate who was substituted in partway through the final and put South Korea in sight of victory with five unanswered points.
The silver was the fifth Olympic medal of Szilagyi’s career, and an upgrade on the team bronze he won with Hungary in Tokyo in 2021.
“I’m sure that tomorrow or next week I’ll be perfectly happy and satisfied with this silver medal. I’m very proud of my team, we really gave everything,” the 34-year-old Szilagyi said, adding he would “decide later” about what would be his sixth Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028.
Oh has three career Olympic medals — one in the individual event, two with the team, all of them gold.
When Oh became the first South Korean to win the men’s individual saber on Saturday, Szilagyi’s four-peat bid ended in his very first bout, stunned by the 27th-seeded Fares Arfa of Canada.
France won the men’s team saber bronze 45-25 against Iran for its sixth fencing medal of the Paris Olympics. Iran was a surprise medal contender after eliminating the second-seeded United States 45-44 in the quarterfinals.
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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games
