The South Korean team had an impressive start at the 2024 Paris Olympics, showcasing their prowess by clinching a total of five medals, including 2 golds, 2 silvers, and 1 bronze, over the first weekend of the event on July 27 and 28 (local time).
S. Korea Olymic team has won a gold medal on the first day of competition for five consecutive Summer Games, starting with the 2008 Beijing Olympics (judo athlete Choi Min-ho). These are the 97th and 98th gold medals in S. Korea’s Summer Olympic history.
The first gold medal was won by South Korea’s fencing star Oh Sang-uk (28). He triumphed over Farees Ferjani (Tunisia) 15-11 in the men’s sabre individual final held at the Grand Palais in Paris. Having been part of the gold-winning team at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, Oh became the first South Korean to win gold in the men’s sabre individual event in his second Olympic appearance.
With this victory, he achieved an ‘individual grand slam’ in fencing, having previously won the 2019 World Championships, the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, and the Asian Championships in 2019 and this year.
Known as the “Formidable Fencer” for his impressive height of 192 cm and agility, Oh credited his coach, Won Woo-young, for the encouraging words during critical moments, such as the quarterfinals against Fares Arfa (Canada), telling him that no one could beat him. Despite struggling with ankle and wrist injuries since the Tokyo Olympics, Oh endured grueling training to win the gold medal.