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| GU Bon-Gil |
| NOC |
Republic of Korea
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| Gender | Men |
| Born |
27 Apr 1989
in Daegu, KOR
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| Height | 1.82 m |
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Sport Specific Information |
| Handedness |
Right |
| Why this sport? |
He was playing football with his friends when he was encouraged to take up the sport by a fencing coach at his middle school. He was included in the school's sabre team because it was short of members. |
General Interest |
| Awards and honours |
He and swimmer Kim Seo-Yeong were named flag bearers for the Republic of Korea for the opening ceremony of the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, People's Republic of China. (news1.kr, 12 Sep 2023)
In 2020 he was inducted into the International Fencing Federation [FIE] Hall of Fame. (Instagram profile, 24 Sep 2020; usafencing.org, 18 Sep 2020)
In 2019 he was presented with the Cheongryong [Blue Dragon] Medal, the highest Order of Sport Merit in the Republic of Korea. (sports.chosun.com, 15 Oct 2019)
He was flag bearer for the Republic of Korea at the opening ceremony of the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. (news.joins.com, 20 Jul 2016) |
Sport Specific Information |
| When and where did you begin this sport? |
He began fencing in 2002 in Daegu, Republic of Korea. |
Further Personal Information |
| Occupation |
Athlete |
| Languages |
Korean |
Sport Specific Information |
| Club / Team |
Korea Sports Promotion Foundation: Jeonnam, KOR |
Further Personal Information |
| Higher education |
Physical Education - Dong-Eui University: Busan, KOR |
Sport Specific Information |
| Name of coach |
Won Woo-Young [national], KOR |
Further Personal Information |
| Residence |
Seoul, KOR |
General Interest |
| Other information |
OTHER ACTIVITIES
In 2021 he featured in a Korean television programme titled 'Sporty Brothers'. "I had reached a peak in my sporting career, but realised that the fencing was only temporarily popular in my country when we won medals. Therefore I wanted to promote the sport and myself through this programme." (Instagram profile, 31 Jan 2022, 18 Apr 2021; Echannel YouTube channel, 29 Apr 2021; enter.etoday.co.kr, 23 Apr 2021)
FURTHER EDUCATION
He has studied for a postgraduate degree at Kookmin University Graduate School of Sports Industry in Seoul, Republic of Korea. (cst.kookmin.ac.kr, 27 Jul 2021; UniK Naver blog, 04 Dec 2018) |
| Hobbies |
Golf, playing video games. (xportsnews.com, 09 Oct 2021; Instagram profile, 02 Feb 2020; isplus.live.joins.com, 25 Apr 2019) |
Further Personal Information |
| Family |
Wife Park Eun-Joo, one son [2023] |
General Interest |
| Superstitions / Rituals / Beliefs |
"I don't eat food on the day of a competition and avoid water as much as possible because it feels like my body is getting heavier." (hankookilbo.com, 03 Jan 2020) |
| Sporting philosophy / motto |
"My style is 80% attack and 20% defence." (sports.news.naver.com, 14 May 2019) |
| Milestones |
He was a member of the team that won the Republic of Korea's first Olympic gold medal in a fencing team event when he joined Kim Jung-Hwan, Oh Eun-Seok, and Won Woo-Young to claim victory in men's team sabre at the 2012 Games in London. (SportsDeskOnline, 10 May 2021) |
| Ambitions |
To win gold at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, People's Republic of China. (joongang.co.kr, 19 Feb 2023) |
| Olympic Games |
| 2020 |
1 |
Team Sabre |
Tokyo, Japan |
| 2012 |
1 |
Team Sabre |
London, England |
| World Championships |
| 2023 |
2 |
Team Sabre |
Milan, Italy |
| 2022 |
1 |
Team Sabre |
Cairo, Egypt |
| 2019 |
1 |
Team Sabre |
Budapest, Hungary |
| 2018 |
1 |
Team Sabre |
Wuxi, China |
| 2018 |
5 |
Individual Sabre |
Wuxi, China |
| 2017 |
1 |
Team Sabre |
Leipzig, Germany |
| 2017 |
2 |
Individual Sabre |
Leipzig, Germany |
| 2015 |
Quarterfinal |
Individual Sabre |
Moscow, Russia |
| 2014 |
2 |
Individual Sabre |
Kazan, Russia |
| 2014 |
2 |
Team Sabre |
Kazan, Russia |
| 2011 |
3 |
Individual Sabre |
Catania, Italy |
| 2010 |
8 |
Team Sabre |
Paris, France |
| Asian Championships |
| 2023 |
1 |
Team Sabre |
Wuxi, China |
| 2022 |
1 |
Individual Sabre |
Seoul, Republic of Korea |
| 2022 |
1 |
Team Sabre |
Seoul, Republic of Korea |
| 2019 |
1 |
Team Sabre |
Tokyo, Japan |
| 2019 |
7 |
Individual Sabre |
Tokyo, Japan |
| 2018 |
1 |
Individual Sabre |
Bangkok, Thailand |
| 2018 |
3 |
Team Sabre |
Bangkok, Thailand |
| 2017 |
1 |
Individual Sabre |
Hong Kong, China |
| 2017 |
1 |
Team Sabre |
Hong Kong, China |
| 2016 |
5 |
Individual Sabre |
Wuxi, China |
| 2015 |
1 |
Team Sabre |
Singapore, Singapore |
| 2015 |
2 |
Individual Sabre |
Singapore, Singapore |
| 2014 |
1 |
Individual Sabre |
Suwon, Republic of Korea |
| 2013 |
1 |
Individual Sabre |
Shanghai, China |
| 2012 |
1 |
Individual Sabre |
Wakayama, Japan |
| 2011 |
1 |
Team Sabre |
Seoul, Republic of Korea |
| 2011 |
2 |
Individual Sabre |
Seoul, Republic of Korea |
| 2010 |
2 |
Team Sabre |
Seoul, Republic of Korea |
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