Vivian Kong Man-wai is a Hong Kong politician and former épée fencer. She won gold in the women's individual épée event at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games and had earlier become a three-time individual Asian champion and three-time Olympian. After retiring from fencing, she was elected to the Legislative Council of Hong Kong in December 2025, representing the Tourism functional constituency.
Early life and education
Kong was born in Hong Kong during British colonial rule but lived in Canada between the ages of two and six. She tried ballet and taekwondo before starting fencing at eleven, choosing épée because she felt it combined the speed of taekwondo with the grace of ballet. She completed secondary school at Sha Tin College and earned a Bachelor of Arts in international relations from Stanford University. In 2021 she obtained a master of law degree from Renmin University of China, and as of 2024 she was studying for a Juris Doctor at The Chinese University of Hong Kong.
Fencing career
Kong competed at the 2016 and 2020 Olympic Games and in January 2019 became the first Hong Kong fencer to win a World Cup title, in Havana. She won a bronze medal in women's épée at the 2022 World Fencing Championships in Cairo. At the 2024 Paris Olympics she overcame a 1–7 deficit in the final to beat Auriane Mallo 13–12, giving Hong Kong its third Olympic gold medal and its first gold of those Games. She announced her retirement from professional fencing in August 2024.
Political career
In November 2025 Kong filed her candidacy for a seat in the Tourism functional constituency, one of twelve functional constituencies that allow people with the right of abode in a foreign country to hold office. She also said she had applied to renounce her Canadian passport. She won the seat in the December 2025 Legislative Council election with 131 votes and has represented the constituency since 2026.