Taiwan's First Olympic Fencer in 30 Years
Antonio Chen Yi-tung was not just any member of Taiwan's Olympic team; he became the first to qualify in fencing in over 30 years. What was it like to train for the 2024 Paris Olympics? What is it like to represent Taiwan in competitions and what is the future of Olympic fencing for Taiwan? In this episode of Zoom In Zoom Out, Chen joins to discuss how he approaches fencing practice, strategy and life as an athlete.
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For Antonio Chen Yi-tung, fencing has never been just a sport. It is both a discipline and a form of art — one that carried him all the way to the 2024 Paris Olympics, where he became the first Taiwanese male fencer in more than 30 years to qualify for the Games.
“Fencing is one of the oldest Olympic sports,” Chen said. “There are three weapons, mainly categorized as foil, epee and sabre. Each category has really different rules. I think a lot different players have their own unique play styles, and depending on their play styles, it can really reflect this fencer’s personality as well.”
Chen, 19, first picked up a foil when he was eight years old after trying several other sports. “When you’re like a little boy you think like, oh knights are really cool, like musketeers. A lot of sword fighting for little boy like me when I was younger — it was really cool,” he said.
Now a university student studying art and design, Chen draws connections between his athletic training and creative work. “Fencing is also really mental,” he said. “When I do art, I think it really helps me train mentally and prepare for games and tournaments.”
He describes his own fencing style in the same terms he uses for design: “I hope my fencing is also like graphic design, where it’s really efficient and precise.”
The young fencer favors speed but admits coaches constantly remind him of another key element: distance. Still, he believes the hardest skill to master is consistency. “Since it’s such a fast sport, the hardest part is to be consistent in every tournament. You’ve got to train your body to remember every movement,” he said.
That challenge was evident during his Olympic debut in Paris. “It was a dream come true,” Chen said. “The first game I went on, I was really nervous, I was super stiff and I was not consistent. But then the second round, I was more locked in, I was more flexible. That’s when I felt my muscles more warmed up.”
In that round, he faced Enzo Lefort, a French fencer he had idolized growing up. “Even though I was leading at the start, I had this mental block where I would feel like, no way I’m leading. So I think I had to really get over this,” he said.
Despite the nerves, Chen insists he never considered giving up the sport. “My greatest motivation for fencing and for doing design is passion. I love what I do, and I think I’m really lucky that I’m able to do what I love as a career,” he said.
Looking ahead, Chen is training for upcoming tournaments including the university games and the 2026 Asian Games in Nagoya. “I hope to train my consistency because I don’t think I’m a consistent player. But I hope I can improve,” he said.
For Taiwan, Chen sees promise in the next generation. “Even though it’s not one of the popular sports, it is definitely up and rising. I’m seeing a lot of really promising young fencers from Taiwan. And I’m really confident in our future team,” he said.
