For the first time in the sport’s history, the Fencing World Championships are on Hong Kong soil — and two of the city’s biggest sporting names get to compete in front of their own crowd. The Kerry Fencing World Championships 2026 runs July 22–30 at AsiaWorld-Expo, bringing more than 1,000 fencers from over 110 nations to Lantau for nine days of foil, épée and sabre. Tickets are on sale now, and if you’ve never watched a fencing bout live, this is the week to start.
Why this homecoming matters
Hong Kong won hosting rights back in November 2023 at the FIE Congress, but the timing feels perfect now. The city has quietly become a fencing power: Edgar Cheung Ka-long took Olympic foil gold at both Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024, Ryan Choi Chun-yin is the reigning individual foil world champion after winning in Tbilisi last year, and épéeist Kaylin Hsieh Sin-yan sits around world No. 13.
Worth noting: Paris 2024 épée gold medallist Vivian Kong Man-wai has retired from competition and won’t be on the piste this time — but the men’s foil squad gives Hong Kong fans plenty to shout for.
The sessions to circle
With 12 individual and team events spread across the week, two sessions stand out for local interest:
- July 25 — Men’s Individual Foil, where Cheung Ka-long and Ryan Choi both compete, with Choi defending his world title on home strip.
- July 28 — Men’s Team Foil, the last big chance to see the Hong Kong squad fence together before the championships close.
Competition splits across two connected halls: finals happen in the 7,000-seat AsiaWorld-Arena on nine finals pistes, while preliminaries and training run next door at AsiaWorld-Summit across roughly 50 pistes. Arrive early on final days if you want a good view of the medal bouts.
Tickets, decoded
Klook is the official ticketing partner (search “2026 World Fencing Championships” on klook.com), with sales open since June 9. Here’s how the pricing breaks down:
- Standing tickets: HK$150, available only for the opening days, July 22–24.
- From July 25 onward, standing access becomes free — but only when bundled with a seated ticket.
- Seated tickets: HK$250–HK$1,500, depending on the session and how close the action is.
Klook has confirmed refunds if the venue becomes inaccessible for a full day due to force majeure or severe weather — a sensible safety net given Hong Kong’s July typhoon season. Wheelchair users needing admission assistance should call AsiaWorld-Expo directly at +852-3606 8000 ahead of their visit.
Getting there — and what to watch for
AsiaWorld-Expo sits right beside Hong Kong International Airport at 1 Airport Expo Boulevard, Chek Lap Kok — easily reached via the AsiaWorld-Expo MTR station on the Tung Chung line extension, or a short taxi ride from the airport terminals. Organisers expect more than 50,000 spectators across the nine days, so build in extra travel time on the marquee dates.
New to fencing? The three weapons reward different instincts. Foil targets the torso only, with strict right-of-way rules that make it feel almost tactical. Épée allows hits anywhere on the body and has no right-of-way — first touch wins, which makes for tense standoffs. Sabre permits slashing hits above the waist and moves fastest of the three, often decided in a blur of blade-work. Once you know the difference, following the scoreboard gets a lot more fun.
With Olympic and world champions fencing at home for the first time ever, this is a genuinely rare sporting moment for the city — grab a ticket before the big dates sell through.
