USA Fencing

(Colorado Springs, Colo.) – Wheelchair fencing competition began at the Paralympic Games on Tuesday, but Team USA’s foil fencers did not advance out of the pools.

Sixteen-year-old Catherine Bouwkamp (Fishers, Ind.) finished in 12^th place overall in the Category A women’s foil event. Bouwkamp lost her first four bouts in a difficult pool that Chui Yee Yu (HKG) who went on to win her seventh Paralympic gold medal. In her final bout, Bouwkamp was tied with third-ranked Sabrina Poignet (FRA), 4-4, but the Frenchwoman scored the last touch to win the bout, 5-4.

Competing at his fifth Paralympic Games, Team Captain Gerard Moreno (Los Angeles, Calif.) narrowly lost his opening bout, 5-4, against Timur Khamatshin (RUS), but his next three matches pitted the 55-year-old against a series of World and Paralympic medalists. Moreno lost his next three bouts against three-time Paralympic Champion Daoliang Hu (CHN), 5-2; three-time Paralympic Champion Pal Szekeres (HUN), 5-0, and 2011 Wheelchair World silver medalist Alim Latreche (FRA), 5-1. The losses meant Moreno failed to make the cut to 10 fencers as he finished 14^th overall.

“I had a tough pool  [and] I'm not that mobile compared to other fencers,” Moreno said. “My first bout [against Khamatshin] was good… but I have things to work on for the future.”

Four-time Paralympian Mario Rodriguez (Port Hueneme, Calif.) drew a small pool with just five fencers. Rodriguez placed 15^th after four losses to fencers that included 2006 Wheelchair World medalist Ludovic Lemoine (FRA) and 2010 Wheelchair World medalist Ivan Andreev (RUS).

“I'm sorry I didn't do better today. I was trying to be in the right place at the right time, but this is definitely a game of wits and speed and I guess I'm just getting a bit ... old,” Rodriguez said. “At the Pan American Championships I got to hear the national anthem. That was amazing. I wish I could do that here."

Competition continues on Wednesday when Gary Van Der Wege (Kyle, Texas) and Ryan Estep (Florence, Miss.) fence in the men’s Category A and B epee events, respectively.

The competition schedule is as follows (All Times Local):

9:30 a.m.
Men’s Category A Epee Pools
Women’s Category A Epee Pools
Women’s Category B Epee Pools

Noon
Men’s Category A Epee Table of 16
Men’s Category B Epee Pools

1 p.m.
Women’s Category A Epee Quarter-finals

1:30 p.m.
Women’s Category B Epee Quarter-finals

2:30 p.m.
Men’s Category A Epee Quarter-finals

3 p.m.
Men’s Category B Epee Table of 16

3:45 p.m.
Men’s Category B Epee Quarter-finals

5:45 p.m.
Men’s Category A Epee Semifinals
Women’s Category A Epee Semifinals
Men’s Category B Epee Semifinals
Women’s Category B Epee Semifinals

6:30 p.m.
Men’s Category A Epee Finals
Women’s Category A Epee Finals
Men’s Category B Epee Finals
Women’s Category B Epee Finals

Top eight and U.S. results are as follows:

Women’s Category A Foil
1. Chui Yee Yu (HKG)
2. Baili Wu (CHN)
3. Zsuzsanna Krajnyak (HUN)
4. Veronika Juhasz (HUN)
5. Delphine Bernard (FRA)
6. Jing Rong (CHN)
7. Evgeniya Sycheva (RUS)
8. Sabrina Poignet (FRA)

12. Catherine Bouwkamp (Fishers, Ind.)

Women’s Category B Foil
1. Fang Yao (CHN)
2. Gyongyi Dani (HUN)
3. Marta Makowska (POL)
4. Jingjing Zhou (CHN)
5. Yui Chong Chan (HKG)
6. Simone Briese-Baetke (GER)
7. Irina Mishurova (RUS)
8. Liudmila Vasileva (RUS)

Men’s Category A Foil
1. Ruyi Ye (CHN)
2. Yijun Chen (CHN)
3. Richard Osvath (HUN)
4. Damien Tokatlian (FRA)
5. Wing Kin Chan (HKG)
6. Artur Yusupov (RUS)
7. Dariusz Pender (POL)
8. Ivan Andreev (RUS)

15. Mario Rodriguez (Port Hueneme, Calif.)

Men’s Category B Foil
1. Daoliang Hu (CHN)
2. Anton Datsko (UKR)
3. Alim Latreche (FRA)
4. Marco Cima (ITA)
5. Laurent Francois (FRA)
6. Marat Yusupov (RUS)
7. Jovane Silva Guissone (BRA)
8. Pal Szekeres (HUN)

14. Gerard Moreno (Los Angeles, Calif.)