Ryan Choi, currently ranked the world's number one men's foilist, has spelled out the one ambition he is yet to fulfil: dragging Hong Kong's team rankings to the very top of the sport before he hangs up his weapon.
Hong Kong sits fourth in the global foil team standings, trailing Italy, the United States and France, but Choi believes the gap is no longer insurmountable. The reigning world No. 1 has shared the top of the individual rankings with compatriot Cheung Ka-long over the past two seasons, and views that depth as the foundation for a serious assault on team supremacy.
"Both [Cheung] Ka-long and I have ranked No 1 in the world, so I think we can now be bolder in having an ultimate goal, and that would be our team climbing to the very top," Choi said in an interview published on 10 May 2026.
Hong Kong arrived at this point on the back of three men's World Cup podiums this season, including a bronze in Istanbul that confirmed the city's status as a foil power. The Olympic gold medal Cheung captured at Tokyo 2020, and Choi's individual ascent through Paris 2024 and into the 2025-26 season, have transformed a previously fringe team into a fixture in the medal conversation.
For Choi, however, individual silverware no longer carries the same weight as collective achievement. "Compared to individual honours, I prefer doing so as a team more," he said. "I don't know if and when we can do it, but this is something that I want to achieve before my career as an athlete comes to an end."
That is not the same as ducking out of the personal arms race. Asked whether the team focus would distract from his quest for individual major titles, the 30-year-old was quick to clarify the boundaries.
"Of course, I still want to win individually," he said. "If I have to choose between one, it would be the team; but if it's up to me, why not both?"
The timing of the comments could not be more loaded. Hong Kong is preparing to host the 2026 World Fencing Championships this summer, the first time the city has staged the sport's flagship event. A home crowd, a friendly piste, and a roster anchored by two former world No. 1s offers Choi and Cheung what may be their most realistic chance to break the Italy-United States-France stranglehold on the team podium.
The Italians, three-time defending team foil world champions, will arrive as the unit to beat. The United States, fortified by Olympic foil gold medallist Lee Kiefer's partner Gerek Meinhardt and the Massialas brothers' generational depth, has long been the benchmark in the men's draw. France, runners-up at Paris 2024, complete the trio Choi and his teammates have been chasing.
Hong Kong's preparation has leaned heavily on the World Cup circuit. Bronze in Istanbul, two further podium finishes earlier in the season, and the consistent presence of multiple Hong Kong fencers in the deep stages of major tournaments have all but guaranteed a top-four seed at the home Worlds.
For a city whose foil programme was built around Cheung's Olympic moment, Choi's blueprint represents the next chapter: turning individual brilliance into a sustained team dynasty. He is not promising silverware, but he has at least set the bar.
With the World Championships looming on home soil, the pressure now lies as much on Italy, the United States and France as it does on Hong Kong's own pair of former world No. 1s.