"It's my first Asian Games, so I feel both excited and nervous. I want to win both the individual and team titles that I couldn't achieve at the Paris Olympics and stand on the highest spot on the podium," she said.
Jeon Ha-young (25, Seoul Metropolitan Government), the face of South Korea's women's sabre fencing national team, recently met with Seoul Economic Daily and shared her goals for the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games in September.
Jeon is the ace of Korea's women's sabre event. She became the first-ever double champion in both individual and team events at the 2021 World Junior Championships in Cairo, Egypt. Following a team bronze at the 2022 World Championships in Milan, she led the team to a silver medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics as the "youngest anchor." At the Asian Championships held last month in New Delhi, India, she also took the lead in winning the team gold medal alongside Kim Jeong-mi, Seo Ji-yeon (both Ansan City Hall), and Choi Se-bin (Daejeon City Hall).
It was a remarkable achievement made amid difficulties, as the association's administrative work was paralyzed by protests that erupted over a shortage of ballot papers in the June 3 local elections. "There were difficulties in preparing for the competition, but nothing significant enough to worry about," she said. "I was able to achieve good results because I had great chemistry with my teammates on the national team."
Jeon takes on the important role of serving as the final anchor in team events. She has produced outstanding results in individual events as well, reaching world No. 1 in the 2024-2025 season rankings. However, she went through a difficult time as her individual ranking dropped to No. 12 in the 2025-2026 season. "After reaching world No. 1, the analysis of me became more meticulous and my rival competitors' marking intensified," Jeon said. "As the things I used to do well stopped working, my confidence dropped significantly and my performance didn't come out properly."
Through the ups and downs, Jeon steadied her mind. She focused on raising her physical and mental condition rather than immediate results. Her senior Yoon Ji-su (retired), who had been her "role model" since she started fencing, played a big role. Yoon is the daughter of Yoon Hak-gil, a legend of the professional baseball team Lotte Giants, and is herself a legend of women's sabre. She also won the team silver medal with Jeon at the Paris Olympics. "Ji-su was an athlete whose every quality I wanted to emulate," Jeon said gratefully. "She retired after the Paris Olympics, but I still seek her advice whenever I have concerns about fencing or when training isn't going well."
Jeon says she wants to be remembered as a fencer who is diligent and always gives her best. "I still can't forget the emotion I felt on the Olympic stage in Paris," she stressed. "When I stood there in my early 20s, it was just amazing, but now that I've gained a lot of experience, this time I'll prepare my best so that I can smile brightly at the end in my finest form."
