🇰🇷 SOUTH KOREA CLINCHES OVERTIME THRILLER FOR ST. MAUR TEAM GOLD
Updated: Aug 6
ST. MAUR, FRANCE — 24 MAY 2026
World number 1 Korea solidified their position at the summit of global women's epee, capturing a dramatic gold medal at the season-closing St. Maur World Cup. The formidable Korean quartet—comprising Lee Hyein, individual bronze medallist Lim Taehee, Song Sera, and Yang Seunghye—navigated a pair of heart-stopping micro-margin battles in the final rounds to claim back-to-back World Cup titles and lock down their fourth team podium of a sensational season.
In an absolute chess match of a final, the top seeds forced a priority minute before edging past a resilient Neutral Athletes (AIN) squad 33–32.
The silver medal marked a massive breakthrough for the ninth-seeded AIN unit, representing their first team podium of the campaign. Hungary won an equally breathtaking, one-touch thriller to claim the bronze, while home favourites France suffered a heartbreaking fourth-place finish.
Path to the Podium
Korea (World number 1) cruised past Austria, Israel, and Poland to reach the final four, where they met world number 6 Hungary. The Koreans built a seemingly comfortable 29–22 cushion after six legs, but had to withstand a furious late-match charge from Hungary's Eszter Muhari, with anchor Song Sera doing just enough to secure a 45–44 victory.
The gold medal match against AIN was a masterclass in passive, tactical discipline. Korea led 8–5 early, but the AIN squad stormed back in the middle stages, opening up a commanding 28–23 lead heading into the final rotation. Stepping onto the strip for the anchor leg, Song engineered a legendary comeback. She out-scored Aizanat Murtazaeva 9–4 to deadlock the match at 32–32 at the end of regulation, before calmly landing the decisive touch in the priority minute to seize the championship.
AIN (World number 9) played the role of ultimate bracket giant-killers all day. The lineup of Milen Bavuge Khabimana, Aizanat Murtazaeva, Anastasiia Rustamova, and Kristina Yasinskaya sent shockwaves through the draw by eliminating Vancouver champions Estonia 45–40, followed by a brilliant 32–31 quarter-final lockdown of world number 2 USA. In the semi-finals against France, with the match tied at 8–8, Murtazaeva delivered a critical 4–0 leg to give AIN a lead they would defensively preserve through a chaotic final rotation to win 36–35.
Hungary (World number 6) secured their second podium of the campaign—adding to their Vancouver World Cup silver—by winning an unforgettable bronze medal play-off. The unit of Eszter Muhari, Lili Büki, Emma Borsody, and Blanka Nagy held a tight 29–26 edge entering the final third against France. Though France's Diane Von Kerssenbrock rallied to tie the score, Büki handed a 36–34 lead to her anchor, Muhari. In a high-pressure closing leg, Muhari expertly utilized double-touches against Alexandra Louis-Marie to cross the finish line at 45–44.
France (World number 3) had to settle for a frustrating fourth-place finish, replicating their result from the Astana World Cup. The star-studded team of Auriane Mallo-Breton, Aliya Luty, Diane Von Kerssenbrock, and Alexandra Louis-Marie put on an exceptional display to eliminate Wuxi champions China 45–41 in the quarter-finals, but ultimately fell just a single touch short in both of their subsequent medal matches.
