Glasson finishes 24th in Hong Kong
Australian Fencing sensation Joseph Glasson has finished in 24th position at the 2026 World Senior Fencing Championships in Hong Kong, after a narrow loss in the Table of 32 to Japan’s Kazuki Iimura.
Glasson pushed Iimura all the way in their rematch from this year’s Asian Fencing Champs, and though he managed to stamp his authority on the way to a 5-1 and then 12-7 lead in the bout, Iimura responded strongly.
Everyone was on the edge of their seats inside the AsiaWorld-Expo main stadium as the match went to 13-13, before Glasson’s Japanese opponent won the remaining two touches to win 13-15.
It finished off an incredible tournament for Glasson after he made light work of Poland’s Jan Nowak earlier in the day in the Table of 64.
Glasson was extremely relaxed heading into the second day of competition and carefully managed his preparation since his T64 qualifying match on Wednesday.
Against Nowak, Glasson was clinical as he raced to a 10-3 lead. From there he made light work of the 27th seed.
Speaking not long after the disappointment of his T32 match, Glasson was upbeat and admitted that it was a disappointing end to the day, but that overall he is happy with how he fenced.
“I’m feeling pretty good,” he said.
“Obviously I am a little disappointed but I think that today was overall positive day and a step in the right direction. It’s encouraging to be able to compete with the strongest fencers in the world and it’s just further fuel to keep on going.”
Glasson admitted that despite the ebbs and flows of his Table of 32 match, he knows now that he belongs at the level.
“This competition has given me a lot of great opportunities to grow and even the first elimination match today was quite positive. I think I controlled that match well but maybe left a bit on the table in the second match,” he said.
“Definitely when I found myself up by five points, it was a little bit unexpected.”
“I knew I could win the match, and if I’m being completely honest, I know that my skill level is increasing a lot, so now I am realising that I can compete with these really strong fencers.”
“Today is a step in the right direction but there is still a little bit to work on and knowing and believing that I can match it with these guys.”
Glasson was grateful for all of the support that has helped him get to this point of his career and added his praise for his group helping him to scale to this level.
“I have many people to thank.
“I’ll say my family firstly is a huge one. My coach Mostafa, my club Sydney Beyond, my university Duke University, my coach at Duke University, Shaimaa and Omar, the Australian Fencing Federation, the support amazing support I got from my teammates today and my friends back home!”
Speaking at the end of the day, Glasson’s coach Mostafa Youssef was full of pride seeing how far he has come, and how he is now a threat to the other big players on the Men’s Foil circuit.
“It was a wonderful tournament for Joseph and he is doing very well. His involvement is growing fast and he has now developed to be a very tough competitor for the other countries,” he said.
“Many fencers are now starting to watch him closely because he has become stronger than before. I think he’s going very well.”
In regards to the competition specifically, Youssef said that it is very clear to see his progression and development over the past 12 months.
“This competition was easier for him than last year to reach the top-32.
“It was a tough bout at the end with the world ranked number five and it was very close, and we will keep working on this.
“I feel that soon we will be very strong, and we are getting closer to being in contention to win a medal at a World Championship.”
T64: Glasson d Nowak 15-4
Play-by-play :
Glasson 1-0 Nowak
Glasson 1-1 Nowak
Glasson 2-1 Nowak
Glasson 3-1 Nowak
Glasson 4-1 Nowak
Glasson 4-2 Nowak
Glasson 5-2 Nowak
Glasson 6-2 Nowak
Glasson 7-2 Nowak
Glasson 8-3 Nowak
Glasson 9-3 Nowak
Glasson 10-3 Nowak
Glasson 10-4 Nowak
Glasson 11-4 Nowak
Glasson 12-4 Nowak
Glasson 13-4 Nowak
Glasson 13-5 Nowak
Glasson 14-5 Nowak
Glasson 15-5 Nowak
T32: Glasson def by Iimura
Play-by-play :
Glasson 1-0
Glasson 2-0
Glasson 3-0
Glasson 4-0
Glasson 4-1
Glasson 5-1
Glasson 5-2
Glasson 5-3
Glasson 6-3
Glasson 7-3
Glasson 8-3
Glasson 8-4
Glasson 8-5
Glasson 9-5
Glasson 10-5
Glasson 10-6
Glasson 10-7
Glasson 11-7
Glasson 12-7
Glasson 12-8
Glasson 12-9
Glasson 12-10
Glasson 12-11
Glasson 12-12
Glasson 13-12
Glasson 13-13
Glasson 13-14
Glasson 13-15
To view the results from the event click here: https://shorturl.at/xoezQ
To view the broadcast of the event head to https://fencingtv.com/