USA Fencing

(Colorado Springs, Colo.) – Saber fencer Karol Metryka (Linden, N.J.) placed fifth as a member of Team Americas 2 in the mixed team competition on Wednesday at the Youth Olympic Games in Nanjing, China.

Metryka fenced with athletes from Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Canada and Brazil in the unique event in which each fencer completes one of six bouts with the first team to 30 winning the match.

Americas 2 opened with a 30-20 victory over Africa in the table of 16 in which Metryka won his bout against Fares Ferjani (TUN), 7-2. 

In the quarter-finals, Americas 2 took on top-seeded Europe 1 and fell one touch short of an upset. Metryka outscored Youth Olympic Games Champion Ivan Ilin (RUS), 5-4, to give Americas 2 a 15-12 lead after the third bout. Although Americas 2 split its next two bouts, the team still held a 25-23 lead going into the final bout between Alina Moseyko (RUS) who won gold in the individual women’s saber event and 11th place finisher Aydill-Marie Colon Quinones (PUR). Moseyko scored seven touches to give Europe 1 the win, 30-29.

In the first 5th – 8th place round between Americas 2 and Europe 3, Metryka found himself up against Nika Shengelia – the Georgian who defeated Metryka in the individual rounds. This time, Metryka split the touches with Shengelia, 5-5, to hold his team’s three-touch lead at 15-12. With a three-touch cushion, Colon-Quinones held off Youth Olympic bronze medalist Petra Zahonyi (HUN) and anchored Team USA to a 30-29 win.

Fencing for fifth place, epee fencer Dylan French (CAN) opened with a 5-3 win against Europe 4’s Samuel Unterhauser (GER) and foil fencer Gabriela Cecchini (BRA) scored five touches against 2014 Cadet World medalist Claudia Borella (ITA). Metryka grew Team USA’s lead to 15-11 with his 5-3 victory against Tudor Cucu (ROU) in the third bout. After epee fencer Tia Simms-Lymn (JAM) outscored Inna Brovko (UKR), 5-3, the Americans led the match, 20-14. Europe 4 made a comeback in the eighth when foil fencer Petar Files (CRO) scored 10 touches to Brazilian Pedro Marostega’s five. In the anchor bout, Colon-Quinones closed the match with a 5-4 win against Theodora Gkountoura (GRE) and Americas 2 finished with a 30-28 victory.

The other four members of Team USA fenced on Americas 1. U.S. foil fencers Sabrina Massialas (San Francisco, Calif.) and George Haglund (Califon, N.J.) and epee fencers Justin Yoo (La Verne, Calif.) and Kasia Nixon (Los Angeles, Calif.) were joined by saber fencers Pietro Jose di Martino (ARG) and Julieta Isabel Toledo Ames (MEX).

The Americans faced a stacked Europe 2 team that included four athletes who won medals in the individual events in Nanjing. Europe 2 led the match, 20-11, after the first four bouts before Haglund came in to pick up the Americans’ first win over the match, 6-5, over Enguerand Roger (FRA) – a bronze medalist in the individual competition. Toledo Ames upset Youth Olympic bronze medalist Chiara Crovari (ITA), 7-5, but the team lost the match, 30-24.

In the 5th – 8th place round against Europe 4, it was Haglund who put up the American team’s first win, 6-5, over Files and Toledo Ames outscored Gkountoura, 7-5, but Americas 2 fell short of a victory by three touches at 30-27.

Fencing Europe 3 for seventh place, Americas 1 won two of its early bouts by 5-3 scores as Yoo defeated Ivan Limarev (RUS) and di Martino bested Shengelia. Neither Nixon nor Mroszczak scored during the fourth bout and the Americans held a 15-12 lead at the start of the fifth. Haglund fenced an action-packed bout against 2014 Cadet World medalist Guillaume Bianchi (ITA), but lost 13-9. Toledo Ames scored four against Zahonyi who took five touches and a 30-27 victory for Europe 3.

For complete results, visit www.nanjing2014.org.

Top eight results are as follows:

Youth Olympic Games Mixed Team Competition
1. Asia-Oceania 1
2. Europe 1
3. Europe 2
4. Asia-Oceania 2
5. Americas 2
6. Europe 4
7. Europe 3
8. Americas 1