🇫🇷 MASTERCLASS PERFORMANCE SEALS WORLD SABRE TITLE FOR FRANCE
HONG KONG — 30 JULY 2026
World number two France closed out the 2026 World Championships in absolute style on the ninth and final day of competition, capturing a sensational World title in the men’s team sabre event. Competing at AsiaWorld-Expo in Hong Kong, the French squad delivered a masterclass performance to dismantle World number one Korea 45–31 in a dominant gold medal bout.
The emphatic victory crowns France as the final World Champions of the tournament, concluding the nine-day event on the highest possible note.
While Korea claimed the silver medal, Romania captured back-to-back World Championship bronze medals by out-fencing Hungary in the play-off bout.
Path to the Podium
Team France, fielding Remi Garrigue, Jean-Philippe Patrice, Sebastien Patrice and Maxime Pianfetti, put together an untouchable campaign through the direct elimination bracket. After receiving an initial bye, the French squad turned aside Singapore 45–31, Turkey 45–28 and China 45–36 to reach the semi-finals.
In the semi-finals against Hungary, France asserted control early to lead 15–10 after three legs. The Hungarian team fought back through the middle bouts to close the gap to 30–28 with three legs remaining. Despite a late rally by Aron Szilagyi in the penultimate fight, the French squad maintained composure to lock down a 45–40 win.
The gold medal match against Korea was a tactical clinic. France exploded off the line to take a massive 15–4 lead after three legs. Park Sangwon subbed in for Korea in the fourth bout, sparking a 10–5 run against Garrigue to pull Korea back into contention. Sebastien Patrice immediately steadied the ship for France, producing two outrageous backline parry-ripostes to re-establish control at 25–15. His brother Jean-Philippe kept up the momentum to push France ahead 30–18 after six legs. Korea introduced Hwang Heegeun off the bench in the seventh bout to trim the deficit by two hits but the Patrice brothers locked down the remaining relays to seal the 45–31 victory.
Team Korea, consisting of Oh Sanguk, individual silver medallist Do Gyeongdong, Park Sangwon and Hwang Heegeun, captured a proud silver medal. The top seeds launched their day with a bye before defeating the Philippines 45–20, Spain 45–39 and Russia 45–37.
In a thrilling semi-final against Romania, Korea commanded the early stages, building a 15–9 cushion after three legs and expanding it to 30–23 after six. Vlad Covaliu sparked a stunning eighth-bout surge for Romania to bring his team within two hits at 40–38. Korean anchor Oh delivered when it mattered most, holding his ground in the final fight to secure a 45–44 win and a place in the gold medal bout.
Team Romania, represented by Vlad Covaliu, George Dragomir, Razvan Ursachi and individual bronze medallist Radu Nitu, celebrated back-to-back World Championship bronze medals, repeating their third-place performance in Tbilisi last year. Seeded fourth, Romania advanced comfortably past Great Britain 45–17, Venezuela 45–30 and Italy 45–36.
Following their single-touch semi-final defeat to Korea, Romania fought back from an early deficit to defeat Hungary 45–39 for bronze. Hungary led 15–13 after three legs and maintained a two-point margin through six bouts. Romania introduced Dragomir for Ursachi, and the substitution completely turned the match around as Dragomir went on a 7–2 run against Bertalan Toth in the seventh bout. Covaliu extended the lead by defeating three-time Olympic Champion Aron Szilagyi 5–2 and Nitu anchored Romania home to seal the victory.
Team Hungary, featuring Bertalan Toth, Benedek Dallos, Aron Szilagyi and Krisztian Rabb, finished in fourth place. Seeded third, the Hungarians recorded convincing early wins over Azerbaijan 45–27, Uzbekistan 45–29 and the United States 45–36 before falling to France and Romania in the final medal rounds.
Full results are here.
