For Immediate Release
6 November 2010
ZAGUNIS TRIUMPHS IN PARIS
For the second year in a row, Mariel Zagunis has been crowned World Champion!
Zagunis (25, Beaverton, Ore.) won the gold in the individual Women’s Saber at the 2010 World Championships this afternoon with a 15-11 defeat of one of her toughest opponents, Olga Kharlan of the Ukraine.
“She and I have been going back and forth with our victories all last and this season, plus I beat her last year for the title, so I knew she would be out to get me, I knew I would have to bring my best game,” said Zagunis from Paris just after the victory.
Zagunis, seeded first going into the competition, sailed through her bracket with relative ease. No opponent scored more than 10 touches against her all day until the final.
By the final, Zagunis said, Kharlan seemed to be fencing strongly all day, and she realized Kharlan must be feeling confident after her defeat of Russia’s Sophia Velikaia in the semifinal match.
“I think she was feeling it, and wanted it today, but I did too. My strategy was to give her no breathing room and make as few mistakes as possible,” Zagunis said.
Kharlan and Zagunis traded points early in the 15-touch bout until the score tied at 3-3 in the first twenty seconds of fencing. Zagunis then pulled ahead by two touches; Kharlan dragged the score back to 5-4 in Zagunis’s favor, and then Zagunis pulled ahead, making it 8-4 by the break.
After that, Kharlan was never able to come closer to three touches from Zagunis, and the bout ended 15-11 with only roughly 30 seconds elapsing in the second period.
One more US woman reached the top 16 in the competition today. Ibtihaj Muhammad (Maplewood, N.J.) defeated the number four seed, Ekaterina Diatchenko of Russia, 15-10 in the round of 32 before falling to Olena Khomrova of the Ukraine in a tough 15-14 defeat. Khomrova went on to earn a bronze.
Dagmara Wozniak (Avenel, N.J.), seeded 13th, won her first match of the day against Anna Varhelyi of Hungary 15-12 but was then upset by Khomrova in the round of 32, 15-8.
Daria Schneider (Brookline, Mass.) lost her round of 64 bout to Azza Besbes of Tunisia 15-12.
Zagunis and the US women will fence for another medal in just three days in the Team Women’s Saber event on Tuesday.
In the Individual Men’s Saber event, also held on Saturday, Daryl Homer (Bronx, N.Y.) of the US reached the round of 16. He took down two hometown athletes, Bolade Apithy (15-14) and then Nicolas Lopez (15-14), both of France, before being eliminated by no.-2 seed Nicolas Limbach of Germany 15-5.
His US teammates had a tougher day. All three lost their first bouts of the day, in the round of 64. James Williams (Sacramento, Calif.) lost a heartbreaker to Woo Young Won of Korea 15-14. Tim Morehouse (Bronx, N.Y.) was defeated by Dmitri Lapkes of Belarus, also 15-14. Ben Igoe (Staten Island, N.Y.) lost to Limbach, who went on to earn the silver.
Wheelchair events were also held today in the Grand Palais. Catherine Bouwkamp (Fishers, Ind.) placed sixth in the Cat. A Women’ s Saber event after earning a 2-3 record in the pools. She was defeated in the round of 8 by Renata Burdon of Poland, who went on to earn the silver.
In the Men’s Cat. A Saber, Mark Calhoun was the highest US finisher, at 15th. Calhoun went 2-3 in the pool round and then lost his elimination bout to Gerasimos Pylarinos of Greece 15-5.
Mario Rodriguez was eliminated after posting a 1-4 in his pool, as was Dennis Aspy , who did not win a bout in the pool round.
In the Cat. B. Men’s Saber, Joey Brinson finished 21st after failing to post a win in the pool round.
The 2010 World Fencing Championships is being held in concurrence with the World Wheelchair Fencing Championships in Paris, France, Nov. 4-13. Tomorrow, foilists take to the spectacular stage at the Grand Palais for the finals of the Individual Men’s and Individual Women’s Foil events. Wheelchair finals will also be held.
About USA Fencing: The United States Fencing Association is the recognized National Governing Body for the sport of fencing in the United States. The USFA is affiliated with the Féderation Internationale d'Escrime (FIE), the international federation for fencing. USA Fencing is based at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo. For more visit www.usfencing.org, www.facebook.com/usfencing or www.twitter.com/usfencing.
About the FIE: The Federation Internationale d’Escrime, based in Lausanne, Switzerland, is the international governing body for the Olympic sport of fencing. The FIE is composed of 135 national federations, each of which is recognized by its country's Olympic Committee as the sole representative of Olympic-style fencing in that country.
For More Information Please Contact:
www.USFencing.org
2010 WORLD FENCING CHAMPIONSHIPS
Nov. 4-13, 2010, Paris, France
Nov. 6 Results
INDIVIDUAL WOMEN’S SABER
112 competitors
14. MUHAMMAD Ibtihaj (25, Maplewood, N.J./Westbrook Found.)
19. WOZNIAK Dagmara (22, Avenel, N.J./Manhattan FC)
44. SCHNEIDER Daria (23, Brookline, Mass./NYAC)
INDIVIDUAL MEN’S SABER
132 competitors
12. HOMER Daryl (20, Bronx, N.Y./Manhattan FC)
42. MOREHOUSE Tim (32, Bronx, N.Y./Manhattan FC)
48. WILLIAMS James (25, Sacramento, Calif./Manhattan FC)
63. IGOE Benjamin (25, Staten Island, N.Y./NYAC)
WHEELCHAIR MEN’s SABER CAT. A
23 competitors
15. CALHOUN Mark (Bremen, Ga./Shepherd Swords F.C.)
20. RODRIGUEZ Mario (Ventura, Calif./Salle D’Asaro/Santa Barbara F.A.)
23. ASPY Dennis (Woodstock, Ga./Shepherd Swords F.C.)
WHEELCHAIR MEN’s SABER, CAT B.
25 competitors
21. BRINSON Joey (Okolona, Miss./Methodist Rehab Center)
WHEELCHAIR WOMEN’S SABER, CAT. A.
12 competitors
