Meet the French Fencer Who Jumped to Team Taiwan

TaiwanPlus News

A half-Taiwanese, half-French fencer made the jump from representing Team France to Team Taiwan. He's hoping to help Taiwan shine in the sport at the 2028 LA Olympics.

Transcript

00:00Born to a French father and a Taiwanese mother, fencer Ilou Guimond lives in France and practices

00:10the sport there.

00:12But he recently switched banners, going from representing France at competitions to representing

00:17Taiwan.

00:22As a child, Ilou didn't have the knack for sports he does now.

00:27My parents really want me to do sports but I was bad at everything and once there is

00:34like an experience to do fencing near my house and I tried, I was also bad.

00:40Things changed for Ilou when he was around 12 years old.

00:44His grandmother fell ill so his family traveled to Taiwan that summer to take care of her.

00:50Across the street from his grandmother's hospital in northern Taiwan's Taoyuan City was a high

00:55school that had a fencing team.

00:57Ilou's father asked if his son could train with them and they agreed.

01:02Ilou says the difference in attitudes toward training between Taiwan and France rekindled

01:08his interest in the sport.

01:10Fencing in France, especially for kids, is for fun.

01:13So you just like playing.

01:15But in Taiwan it was a serious thing.

01:17Like you need to train, you need to do footwork, you need to do strength, you need to do power.

01:22Ilou spent only three or four months that summer fencing in Taiwan.

01:27But the short time had a huge impact on his life.

01:31First I was doing regional competition which I do pretty good.

01:35Then I go to like a special like high level center for young people, junior fencer.

01:42And then like I go to World Cups in international for France.

01:47Ilou went on to win medals as a junior fencer for Team France.

01:55But in 2021 he made the decision to switch flags and begin competing for Taiwan.

02:01He says if it weren't for his time in Taiwan, he never would have discovered a love for

02:06fencing.

02:07The most deeply linked I was with Taiwan of course was my family and my mother's side

02:13but it was also fencing because of that period in Taoyuan.

02:18Ilou's specialty is epe, one of three swords used in the sport.

02:25And he's the highest ranked epe fencer in Taiwan.

02:29His fencing partners say his diversity on the strip is his strength.

02:33So I'd say it's quite balanced in the sense that he can do anything.

02:37He can be quite passive and pick you off and be very clean but he can also be quite aggressive

02:42and strong.

02:43He's also a player, a defensive player who can progress, who can play in a different

02:49style you know.

02:50He will not be blocked in a certain style of fencing.

02:59And with a keen knowledge of France's fencing culture and an interest in developing Taiwan's,

03:04Ilou wants to help elevate the sport in the country where his passion was lit.

03:09I saw like a whole bunch of talents you have in Taiwan, they just need to be a little bit

03:14pushed and I want to be that push also for them.

03:18Ilou missed out on his chance to compete for Taiwan on his home turf at the Paris Olympics.

03:24But he's looking beyond, eyeing the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028 and hoping to help Taiwan

03:30secure its first fencing medal at the Games.

03:33Howard Zhang, Leon Lien and Leslie Liao in Paris, France for Taiwan Plus.

03:39For more UN videos visit www.un.org

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