The Korean miracle: '41:44→42:44→43:44→44:44→45:44' — a dramatic comeback! Fencing men's sabre team final between Korea and Japan ends in historic first-ever victory... Even Japan roared simultaneously at the end, but Oh Sang-uk said, "I was 100% sure of victory." [Aichi Nagoya AG]

*This content was translated by AI.

With the score at 41-44, if Korea had conceded just one more point, the gold medal would have gone to Japan. But the Korean fencer standing on the piste was 'ace' Oh Sang-uk (29, Daejeon Metropolitan City Police). Oh Sang-uk steadily caught up point by point and eventually tied the match at 44-44. Then, in the final decisive moment when both sides seemed to have scored, both Korea and Japan roared as if they were certain they had won the point. The moment they savored their victory, believing they had secured the gold medal, video review was initiated, and the result was a Korean victory. Oh Sang-uk stood calmly on the piste with a cool smile, while his teammates rushed over to embrace each other, sharing in the joy of the gold medal.

Led by Oh Sang-uk, with Park Sang-won (both from Daejeon Metropolitan City Police), Do Kyung-dong (Daegu Metropolitan City Police), and substitute Hwang Hee-geun (Korea National Sport University), the South Korean men's sabre team defeated host nation Japan 45-44 in the men's sabre team final at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games held at the Aichi Sky Expo Hall in Tokoname, Aichi Prefecture, Japan on the 26th.

With this victory, the South Korean men's sabre team secured its fourth consecutive gold medal at the Asian Games, following wins in Incheon 2014, Jakarta-Palembang 2018, and Hangzhou 2022 (held in 2023). South Korea is the only nation to achieve four consecutive team titles in both men's and women's sabre at the Asian Games.

Oh Sang-uk, who won gold in both the individual and team events at this tournament, became the second double champion for the South Korean delegation at these Games. Following his success at the previous Hangzhou Games, Oh achieved 'back-to-back double championships' across two consecutive tournaments. Including the team gold he won as the youngest member at age 22 during the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Games, he has now collected a total of five Asian Games gold medals.

As the world's second-ranked team, South Korea displayed overwhelming performance throughout the tournament. After advancing to the quarterfinals by walkover, they defeated India 45-25 in the quarterfinals. They then crushed Hong Kong 45-24 in the semifinals to reach the final.

The early atmosphere of the final was perfect. Park Sang-won, who took the first turn on the piste, successfully established an early lead against Kubo Mao with a 5-3 score. As Oh Sang-uk and Do Kyung-dong, competing in the second and third rounds respectively, each scored five points while conceding only two and three points, South Korea built a lead of 15-8, nearly doubling their opponent's score. Even during Japan's comeback attempts in rounds 4 through 6, South Korea maintained stable performance to take a 30-26 lead.

However, an unexpected setback occurred in the seventh round. Do Kyung-dong, who competed with ankle pain, struggled against Japan's fierce attacks, conceding two points while allowing nine total points. South Korea fell behind 32-35.

It was Park Sang-won who lifted the team's morale. Competing in the eighth round, Park launched relentless forward attacks, scoring an impressive seven points and shaking Japan's confidence.

With the score at 39-40, trailing by just one point, Oh Sang-uk received the baton for the fateful ninth and final round. Standing on the piste, Oh Sang-uk conceded points consecutively to Kubo Mao, falling behind 41-44 — a match point situation. This was a life-or-death moment where conceding just one more point would mean losing the gold medal.

At this critical moment, Oh Sang-uk's true ability shone through. Leveraging his signature overwhelming reach and faster-than-usual timing, he scored points consecutively. Steadily catching up point by point, Oh eventually tied the match at 44-44. In the final one-point deciding situation, he successfully executed a counterattack and roared in triumph.

Oh Sang-uk proved through this tournament that his prime is still ongoing. As the youngest member of the eight-year Jeon (CEO) team, he carried forward the spirit of youth and has now fully inherited the baton from the 'Avengers' golden generation, standing tall as the team's eldest leader. Ahead of these Games, concerns were raised in some quarters due to the recurrence of his chronic lower back pain and fierce challenges from world-class young rivals.

However, Oh Sang-uk's class remained unshaken. He consecutively won the individual events at the January Salt Lake City World Cup in the United States and the May Cairo World Cup in Egypt. He then claimed a double championship at the June Asian Championships, announcing his continued dominance. Finally, at this Asian Games, he swept both the individual and team titles, firmly securing his position at the pinnacle of the sport.

According to NEWS1, after winning, Oh Sang-uk said, "I tried to stay calm at 41-44. I took some hits, but I gathered data during that process. I thought, 'This is how you should act in such situations.' I focused solely on the game with the intention of making a comeback." Regarding the final judging situation, he added, "I was 100% sure I had won. Knowing what kind of attack my opponent might make, I struck accordingly, so I could be certain that I had won."

Having conquered the Asian stage after winning gold in the team event at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and claiming a double championship (individual and team) at the 2024 Paris Olympics, Oh Sang-uk found the Asian arena still too narrow. Now, Oh's gaze turns toward the 2028 Los Angeles (LA) Olympics.

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*This content was translated by AI.