USA Fencing

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Make it five! The Team USA Women’s Saber and Men’s Saber squads are officially heading to the Olympic Games Paris 2024 this summer, joining Women’s Epee, Men’s Foil and Women’s Foil in sending full squads to the Games. These qualifications ensure that the United States will be well represented across the board in fencing’s premier events this summer.

The path to Olympic qualification has been intense, with teams across the globe vying for points in World Cups, Zonal Championships and the World Championships since May 2023. The two-pronged qualification system requires teams to either finish in the top four globally or to top their zone (while also ranking at least 16th worldwide). 

Those eight nations that qualify in each weapon/gender can send a full squad of four athletes (three competitors for both the individual and team events and one replacement athlete available for the team event only).

The Men’s Saber team showed impressive consistency and skill this season, earning a medal at every qualifying tournament: two golds, two silvers and two bronzes. As the qualifying cycle nears its end, Team USA is locked in the top four in Men’s Saber, with just the Budapest World Cup remaining.

On the other side, the Women’s Saber squad achieved qualification through their dominant performance atop the Americas zone, outpacing nearest competitors Mexico and Canada. With only one tournament left in the qualifying window, their position is secure, guaranteeing an Olympic berth.

Phil Andrews, CEO of USA Fencing, extended his congratulations to the athletes and coaches for their hard-fought success. 

“Our saber squads have shown the world the strength and determination of Team USA,” he says. “I'm incredibly proud of their achievements and look forward to seeing them shine in Paris.”

Andrews also praised the leadership and dedication of Women’s Saber National Coach Aleks Ochocki and Men’s Saber National Coach Akhi Spencer-El, whose guidance has been instrumental in the path to Paris.

While the team's Olympic spot is secured, two elements remain unknown: team selection and team and individual seeding.

Athlete Selection

While we know that Men’s Saber will send a full squad, athlete selection has not been finalized. 

The Men’s Saber squad for Paris will include three fencers who compete in both the individual and team events, plus a fourth "replacement athlete" who may be used in the team event.

The exact composition of the 3+1 athletes remains to be determined. Selection points are still up for grabs at the upcoming USA Fencing April NAC/Division I Championships in Salt Lake City, as well as the Budapest World Cup. That will keep the anticipation high as we approach the Olympics.

• Senior World Cup — Individual and Team events, March 22–24 in Budapest, Hungary

  • Points earned will impact USA Fencing athlete selection and team and individual Olympic seeding

–Olympic Qualification Window Ends–

• April North American Cup and Division I National Championships, the final domestic event of Olympic selection window — April 25–28 in Salt Lake City, Utah

  • Points earned will impact USA Fencing athlete selection 

–Team USA Athlete Selection Period Ends–

• Senior Grand Prix — Individual event only, May 4–6 in Seoul, Korea

  • Points earned will impact individual Olympic seeding 

• Senior World Cup — Individual and Team events, May 17–19 in Madrid, Spain

  • Points earned will impact team and individual Olympic seeding

• Senior Pan American Zonal Championships — Individual and Team events, June 22–27 in San Salvador, El Salvador

  • Points earned will impact team and individual Olympic seeding

• 2024 Olympic Games — Individual and Team events, July 27–Aug. 4 in Paris, France

The top four countries in each weapon are guaranteed a spot, and Team USA Men’s Saber is guaranteed to finish among the four best.

Here are some of the results that helped Team USA secure a Games spot:

• Gold at Alger World Cup (November 2023)

• Gold at Lima Zonal Championships (June 2023)

• Silver at Padua World Cup (March 2024)

• Silver at Madrid World Cup (May 2023)

• Bronze at Milan World Championships (July 2023)

• Bronze at Tbilisi World Cup (February 2024)

While the team's Olympic spot is secured, two elements remain unknown: team selection and team and individual seeding.

Athlete Selection

While we know that Women’s Saber will send a full squad, athlete selection has not been finalized. 

The Women’s Saber squad for Paris will include three fencers who compete in both the individual and team events, plus a fourth "replacement athlete" who may be used in the team event.

The exact composition of the 3+1 athletes remains to be determined. Selection points are still up for grabs at the upcoming USA Fencing April NAC/Division I Championships in Salt Lake City, as well as the Sint Niklaas World Cup. That will keep the anticipation high as we approach the Olympics.

• Senior World Cup — Individual and Team events, March 15–17 in Sint Niklaas, Belgium

  • Points earned will impact USA Fencing athlete selection and team and individual Olympic seeding

–Olympic Qualification Window Ends–

• April North American Cup and Division I National Championships, the final domestic event of Olympic selection window — April 25–28 in Salt Lake City, Utah

  • Points earned will impact USA Fencing athlete selection 

–Team USA Athlete Selection Period Ends–

• Senior Grand Prix — Individual event only, May 4–6 in Seoul, Korea

  • Points earned will impact individual Olympic seeding 

• Senior World Cup — Individual and Team events, May 17–19 in Plovdiv, Bulgaria

  • Points earned will impact team and individual Olympic seeding

• Senior Pan American Zonal Championships — Individual and Team events, June 22–27 in San Salvador, El Salvador

  • Points earned will impact team and individual Olympic seeding

• 2024 Olympic Games — Individual and Team events, July 27–Aug. 4 in Paris, France

The top four countries in each weapon are guaranteed a spot. After that, each zone (Asia-Oceania, Africa, Europe and the Americas) sends one nation in each weapon, as long as that team is ranked 5th through 16th overall. Team USA is guaranteed to finish atop the Americas zone (and in the top 16).

Here are some of the results that helped Team USA secure a Games spot:

• Gold at Lima Zonal Championships (June 2023)

• Silver at Batumi World Cup (May 2023)

• 7th place at Milan World Championships (July 2023)

With Women’s Saber and Men’s Saber officially in, Team USA has five squads locked for Paris. Our saber teams join Women’s Epee, Men’s Foil and Women’s Foil. 

Men’s Epee will not finish high enough to send a full squad, but there is one more chance to qualify an individual athlete: The zonal qualifying tournament held April 5–7 in San Jose, Costa Rica. Team USA will send one fencer to that competition, and if he wins, he’s in.