Aichi-nagoya: Taiwanese athlete Chien Hui-hsuan secured a bronze medal in the women's individual kata event in karate, marking Taiwan's first medal at the 2026 Asian Games. Chien triumphed over Iran's Fatemeh Sadeghi with a 4-1 victory in the bronze medal bout, achieving her first medal in Asian Games competition.
According to Focus Taiwan, Chien expressed gratitude towards her friends, family, and herself for their unwavering support and efforts. She highlighted the challenges faced in achieving breakthroughs but remained determined throughout the competition. Reflecting on a previous defeat to Sadeghi during the 2025 Karate World Championships qualifying event, Chien made strategic adjustments by adopting a more familiar kata, a decision that ultimately paid off with favorable recognition from the judges.
As she approaches her 35th birthday, Chien expressed satisfaction with her accomplishment and hopes it inspires the rest of Taiwan's karate team. She is set to participate with two younger teammates in the women's team kata event on Tuesday.
Chien's journey to this achievement included narrowly missing a bronze medal in the 2022 Asian Games by just 0.6 points. Determined to improve, she embarked on international training trips over the past six months, visiting Okinawa, Oita, and Tottori in Japan, as well as Spain, where she trained with Olympic gold medalist Sandra S¡nchez. These experiences were instrumental in refining her style and enhancing her performance.