HK fencer Cedric Ho books ticket to Paris
Hong Kong epee fencer Cedric Ho booked his maiden ticket to the Olympics in dramatic fashion, winning the final qualifying tournament for the Paris Games with victories by a single point in both the semi-final and final. Ho, the SAR's top-rated fencer and ranked 52 in the world, defeated Iranian Mohammed Esmaeili 15-14 in the semi-final of the Asia-Oceania zonal qualifiers held in the United Arab Emirates. The 28-year-old then won the final bout 9-8 against Uzbekistan's Javokhirbek Nurmatov to book his trip to Paris this summer. The SAR has now qualified for 30 events in the upcoming Games. Things didn't go as well for Ho's teammate, sabre fencer Low Ho-tin, whose hope for Paris was dashed after he suffered a 15-6 semi-final defeat at the hands of China's Shen Chenpeng, who went on to win the qualifier.