South Korean women's foil fencer Park Ji-hee (Seoul City Hall) has captured the silver medal in the individual event at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.

Park secured the silver medal after losing 4-15 to Yuka Ueno of Japan in the final of the women's foil individual event held today (September 23) at the Aichi Sky Expo in Tokoname, Aichi Prefecture, Japan.

Born in 2001, Park reached the individual final and won a silver medal in her very first Asian Games appearance.

Ranked 23rd in the world, Park also achieved the milestone of becoming the first South Korean female fencer to reach the Asian Games women's foil individual final in eight years.

Nam Hyun-hee claimed back-to-back gold medals at the 2006 Doha and 2010 Guangzhou Games, and Jeon Hee-sook achieved consecutive victories at the 2014 Incheon and 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Games. However, at the 2023 Hangzhou Games, Hong Se-na's bronze medal was the best result for South Korea in the women's foil individual event.

Earlier in the day, Park defeated Mina Naorem of India 15-3 in her opening match in the round of 32, and overcame Valerie Cheng of Hong Kong 15-9 in the round of 16.

In the quarterfinals against Samantha Catantan of the Philippines, she surrendered the early initiative but secured a 15-10 comeback victory to guarantee at least a bronze medal.

In the semifinals, Park clashed with Polina Volobueva—a Russia-born opponent with a strong physique and a potent counterattack, despite her lower world ranking of 51st—and emerged victorious after a tight, seesaw battle.

In the final, she faced world No. 3 Yuka Ueno, the individual silver medalist from the Hangzhou Games and a member of Japan's bronze medal-winning team at the 2024 Paris Olympics, struggling from the start as she conceded consecutive points.

Although she even changed her sword once to try to shift the momentum, Park failed to score a single point in the first round and trailed 0-8 against Ueno, who boasted calm and precise attacks.

After giving up 12 consecutive points, Park ignited a counterattack by scoring three points in a row, but she ultimately failed to turn the tide and had to settle for the silver medal.

Fencing individual events at the Asian Games allow a maximum of two participants per country.

Mo Byeol-i (Incheon Metropolitan City Yeongjong District Office), who competed in the individual event alongside Park on this day, was eliminated in the round of 16 after losing 7-15 to Komaki Kikuchi of Japan.

Park will aim to team up with her colleagues, including Mo Byeol-i, to win another medal in the team event taking place on September 26.

(Photo: Yonhap News)