LAUSANNE, Switz., Nov. 13, 2023 – The International Fencing Federation (FIE) opened its 2023-2024 senior competition season with four World Cups in Algiers, Bern, Istanbul and Legnano. The busy schedule of World Cups and Grand Prix events is especially significant as athletes and teams prepare for next summer’s Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Current provisional qualification information for Paris 2024 is available here: https://paris.fie.org/
Here are the results from the four World Cups:
Algiers, Algeria Men’s and Women’s Sabre World Cup – Nov. 9-12
France’s Sara Balzer and Bolade Apithy won the individual gold medals at the Algiers, Algeria Women’s and Men’s Sabre World Cup, with Korea and USA winning the women’s and men’s team events. The event took place at the Salle Omnisports La Couple, with 152 women and 181 men as well as 20 women’s and 22 men’s teams participating in the competition.
Balzer faced Ukraine’s four-time world champion Olga Kharlan in the final bout of the women’s individual sabre event, winning with a 15-11 score. In the semifinal round, Kharlan won against Greece’s Despina Georgiadou, 15-12, while Balzer defeated Greece’s Theodora Gkountoura, 15-10. Of note, USA’s Tatiana Nazlymov beat Japan’s two-time world champion Misaki Emura in the round of 16, 15-13, before being defeated in the quarterfinals by Kharlan, 15-9.
Apithy faced Korea’s world champion Sanguk Oh in the final bout of the men’s individual sabre event, winning with a 15-14 score. In the semifinal round, Oh won against Italy’s Pietro Torre, 15-8, while Apithy defeated Hungary’s world and three-time Olympic champion Aron Szilagyi, 15-14. Of note, Oh beat USA’s world champion Eli Dershwitz in the table of 16, 15-9.
In the women’s team sabre event, Korea won against France in the final match, 45-43. France defeated Ukraine in the semifinals, 45-34, while Korea beat Hungary, 45-27. The bronze medal went to Hungary over Ukraine, 45-39.
In the men’s team sabre event, USA won against Korea in the final match, 45-32. Korea defeated Italy in the semifinals, 45-37, while USA beat Hungary, 45-29. The bronze medal went to Italy over Hungary, 45-33.
Bern, Switzerland Men’s Epee World Cup – Nov. 10-12
Switzerland’s Lucas Malcotti won the individual gold medal at the Bern Men’s Epee World Cup, and France won the team gold. The event took place at the Mobiliar Arena, with 328 individual fencers and 33 teams participating in the competition.
Malcotti faced teammate Alexis Bayard in the final bout of the men’s individual epee event, winning with a 15-13 score. In the semifinal round, Bayard won against Japan’s Masaru Yamada, 11-10, while Malcotti defeated Hungary’s world champion Mate Tamas Koch, 15-11. Of note, Bayard beat France’s world and Olympic champion Romain Cannone in the quarterfinals, 13-12.
In the men’s team epee event, France won against Italy in the final match, 41-37. Italy defeated Hungary in the semifinals, 45-37, while France beat Korea, 42-33. The bronze medal went to Hungary over Korea, 45-32.
Istanbul, Türkiye Men’s Foil World Cup – Nov. 10-12
USA’s Alexander Massialas won the individual gold medal at the Istanbul Men’s Foil World Cup, and Italy won the team gold. The event took place at the Başakşehir Gençlik ve Spor İlçe Müdürlüğü Tesisleri, with 242 individual fencers and 24 teams participating in the competition.
Massialas faced Hong Kong, China’s Olympic champion Ka Long Cheung in the final bout of the men’s individual foil event, winning with a 15-12 score. In the semifinal round, Cheung won against Italy’s Giulio Lombardi, 15-8, while Massialas defeated Italy’s Giorgio Avola, 15-8. Of note, Japan’s Shunsuke Baba beat France’s two-time world champion Enzo Lefort in the round of 16, 15-13, before being defeated by Avola, 15-7 in the quarterfinals. Also, in the round of 16, Lombardi won against teammate and world champion Alessio Foconi, 15-8.
In the men’s team foil event, Italy won against Japan in the final match, 45-41. Japan beat China in the semifinals, 45-38, while Italy defeated USA, 45-39. The bronze medal went to USA over China, 45-42.
Legnano, Italy Women’s Epee World Cup – Nov. 10-12
USA’s Margherita Guzzi Vincenti won the individual gold medal at the Legnano Women’s Epee World Cup, and Ukraine won the team gold. The event took place at the Palazzetto dello Sport di Castellanza, with 286 individual fencers and 26 teams participating in the competition.
Guzzi Vincenti faced Switzerland’s Pauline Brunner in the final bout of the women’s individual epee event, winning with a 15-8 score. In the semifinal round, Brunner won against Poland’s Aleksandra Jarecka, 15-11, while Guzzi Vincenti defeated Estonia’s Katrina Lehis, 8-7. Of note, Guzzi Vincenti beat Italy’s world champion Mara Navarria in the quarterfinals, 10-9, and Jarecka won against China’s Olympic champion Yiwen Sun, 15-14. In the round of 16, Brunner beat Korea’s world champion Sera Song, 15-6.
In the women’s team epee event, Ukraine won against Korea in the final match, 41-40. Korea defeated Poland in the semifinals, 39-35, while Ukraine beat Hong Kong, China, 45-40. The bronze medal went to Poland over Hong Kong, China, 45-34.
Complete and official results for these event may be found here on the FIE web site. For more exciting world fencing news and features, check out the YouTube FIE Fencing Channel.