Mariel Zagunis Wins Bronze at Absolute Fencing Gear® New York Grand Prix

(Brooklyn, N.Y.) – Fencing in front of an American crowd at a Grand Prix for the first time since 2008, two-time Olympic Champion Mariel Zagunis (Beaverton, Ore.) won bronze and 2012 Olympian Daryl Homer (Bronx, N.Y.) finished seventh at the Absolute Fencing Gear® New York Grand Prix on Sunday.

For Zagunis, her top-four result would be the second individual medal of a new season that has spanned just three international tournaments.

During the early direct elimination rounds, Zagunis was all business as she picked off her opponents one by one. Although some would briefly come close to dispatching the five-time Senior World Champion, Zagunis won four straight bouts to secure her medal.

In the table of 64, 2013 Junior World Team member Yaqi Shao (CHN) held even with Zagunis at four touches each early in the bout. As she’s known to do, however, Zagunis shut down her opponent with a 4-1 run to finish the first period at 8-5. Shao narrowed the gap in the second period, but Zagunis still prevailed, 15-11.

Zagunis fenced 2014 Senior World team silver medalist Manon Brunet (FRA) in the table of 32 and built a commanding, 8-4, lead in the first period. In the second, Zagunis grew her lead to six at 11-5 and went on to take a 15-7 win, giving up just three touches in the second.

In the table of 16, Zagunis would keep Rajin Lee (KOR) at a distance as well taking an 8-4 lead at the break and winning the bout, 15-7, to advance to the quarter-finals.

Charlotte Lembach, a member of the French squad that took silver against Team USA at the Senior Worlds in July, came within three touches of Zagunis in the second period of the quarters where the American led the bout, 11-8. Zagunis took the next two touches and finished strong with a 15-9 result.

While the first two days of competition were held at the New York Marriott at Brooklyn Bridge, the semifinal and gold medal bouts would take place at Grand Prospect Hall.

With a center finals strip laid out under a chandelier, the athletes were surrounded by three floors of tiered fans during the evening event.

Zagunis took the strip against 2011 Senior World Champion Sofiya Velikaya (RUS) in the semis where she would fence the Russian for the third time this year. Although Velikaya had a baby less than a year ago, her return to competition came in March and she won the first two tournaments of the new season as warmups for this event.

Zagunis came back from a four-touch deficit at the break to tie Velikaya at 12 in the second period. To stay in contention for gold and the chance to take home the Korfanty Cup – an award given to the gold medalists and sponsored by the Mariel Zagunis Women’s Sabre Fund in honor of three-time Olympic Coach Ed Korfanty (Portland, Ore.)

Velikaya and Zagunis each scored again to set the score at 13, but Velikaya closed out with two more touches for a 15-13 victory.

“There was a lot of back and forth. Sofiya and I have fenced each other many many times,” Zagunis said. “It’s just another learning experience for me and I know how to beat her so I’m just going to go home and watch the film and come back and use what I learned today for next time.”

In the men’s rounds, Homer benefitted throughout the afternoon from a crowd that quickly made his every bout a standing room only event.

As a lifelong New Yorker, Homer grew up in the Bronx and went to school at nearby St. John’s University where he won two NCAA titles for the Red Storm.

“I told you we were going to have Brooklyn on tilt,” Homer laughed when asked about the crowd. “I had my college friends here, some of the younger athletes came, my coworkers came. It was great,” Homer said. “I think they genuinely enjoyed it. A lot of people have asked me what fencing is like and about the intensity and I think they got to really appreciate it today.”

As the 11th ranked fencer in the world, Homer earned a bye into the second day of competition on Sunday and the crowd watched a close first half of his opening bout in the table of 32 as Artem Zanin (RUS) led Homer, 8-7, at the break. Once Homer scored the first touch in the second, however, he never looked back. A member of the crowd yelled “One by one!” and Homer did just that as he fought for each touch of a 15-13 victory.

Benedikt Wagner (GER), a bronze medalist at the 2013 Absolute Fencing Gear® Korfanty Cup in Chicago, came into the table of 32 looking to upset Homer and burst out to a 7-1 lead early in the bout. Homer scored twice before the break to cut Wagner’s lead to 8-3. In the second period, Wagner was up, 12-9, when Homer went on a 6-1 run to win the bout, 15-13, as the crowd roared when Homer calmly picked off each touch.

“I think what it does is that it removes some of the emotion that you have to pour in. Obviously, you’re fully committed and fully focused and fully invested, but, in terms of screaming and celebrating, you kind of give that to the crowd and let the crowd carry you through that part of it,” Homer said.

In the table of 16, Homer and Tiberiu Dolniceanu (ROU), a two-time Senior World medalist who is ranked sixth in the world. Not only have the two battled at major championships, but the Romanian and his teammates trained with Homer during a camp in New York throughout the past week.

Dolniceanu held an 8-7 lead in the first period, but Homer gave up just two touches to take a 14-10 lead in the second. The Romanian made a comeback with three straight scores before Homer took the touch he needed to win the bout, 15-13.

In the quarter-finals, Homer was ready to upset his longtime rival, 2012 Olympian Aron Szilagyi and had the bout tied against the Hungarian at five. Szilagyi was up to the challenge and refused to be beaten as he took the bout, 15-9.

Despite the loss, Homer was pleased with his fencing and the gains he has made this season with his seventh place result.

“First and foremost, we’re back,” Homer said after the quarters. “I think it was a solid day. I was coming off a loss in the 32 at the last tournament and normally I would hit the panic button pretty quickly, but I’ve got a great team around me so they just try to convince me to stay calm and focused and just keep doing the right things and good things will happen. For the last three or four weeks I’ve been super focused and super diligent with the way we’ve been working. I think that there’s a lot of room for improvement, but I think I showed today that I can compete at the highest level and that we can continue to win.”

Zagunis and Homer were just two of 14 U.S. fencers who earned World Ranking points by advancing to the second day of competition at the Absolute Fencing Gear® New York Grand Prix.

Dagmara Wozniak (Avenel, N.J.), Homer’s teammate both at St. John’s and in London, also had the advantage of an enthusiastic crowd of friends and family.

In the table of 64, Wozniak fenced her former St. John’s teammate, Anna Limbach (GER), and won the bout, 15-7.

After a 15-14 win against Hee Ra Lee (KOR), Wozniak took on Velikaya and gave the 2012 Olympic silver medalist won of her closest bouts of the season, but fell a touch short with a 15-14 loss.

Velikaya’s bout against Wozniak was the third straight win against Americans by the Russian who defeated Faizah Muhammad (Maplewood, N.J.), 15-9, in the table of 64 and Loweye Diedro (Freeport, N.Y.), 15-6.

Sage Palmedo (Portland, Ore.), a three-time Junior World medalist, took out the No. 8 seed Chen Shen in the table of 64 by a 15-4 score. Palmedo nearly secured her first top-16 result of the season when she jumped out to an early lead against Norika Tomura (JPN). Palmedo lost a heartbreaker in the end, though, by a 15-14 score.

Kamali Thompson (Teaneck, N.J.), a 2013 World University Games Team member, fenced her Peter Westbrook Foundation teammate, Ibtihaj Muhammad (Maplewood, N.J.) in the table of 64 and upset the 2014 Senior World Team Champion, 15-7, in the first round of competition. Fencing in a table of 32 bout for the second time on the World Cup circuit, Thompson lost to 2007 Senior World medalist Bogna Jozwiak (POL), 15-10.

Including Faizah Muhammad, seven U.S. fencers advanced to the table of 64.

Monica Aksamit (Matawan, N.J.), a 2009 Senior World Team member, was the top fencer out of the preliminary direct elimination tables on Saturday, but lost to Brunet, 15-11.

Junior fencer Tara Hassett (Beaverton, Ore.) finished 6-0 in the pools on Saturday to qualify for the 64 at her second Senior World Cup event. Hassett drew Svetlana Kormilitsyna (RUS) in her opening round and lost the bout 15-5.

Fencing in her first tournament since undergoing surgery in October, 2014 Senior World Team member Eliza Stone (Chicago, Ill.) lost her bout to Maria Belen Perez Maurice (ARG), 15-11. Perez Maurice went on to upset 2012 Olympic Champion Jiyeon Kim (KOR) and win her first Senior World Cup medal with a bronze.

On the men’s side, 2014 Junior World team bronze medalist Andrew Mackiewicz (Westwood, Mass.) lost to Luigi Miracco (ITA), 15-8, in the 64.

Three-time Junior World medalist Eli Dershwitz (Sherborn, Mass.) drew Woo Young Won (KOR) for the first time this year in international competition. Dershwitz nearly beat his rival, but lost to the 2010 Senior World Champion, 15-14.

Following a 2-4 result in pools, London Olympian Jeff Spear (Wynantskill, N.Y.) drew world No. 1 Bongil Gu (KOR) in the first round and lost the bout, 15-10.

Click here to view complete results.

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

Women’s Absolute Fencing Gear® New York Grand Prix
1. Olga Kharlan (UKR)
2. Sofya Velikaya (RUS)
3. Maria Belen Perez Maurice (ARG)
3. Mariel Zagunis (Beaverton, Ore.)
5. Rossella Gregorio (ITA)
6. Charlotte Lembach (FRA)
7. Bogna Jozwiak (POL)
8. Jiarui Qian (CHN)

10. Dagmara Wozniak (Avenel, N.J.)
20. Loweye Diedro (Freeport, N.Y.)
31. Kamali Thompson (Teaneck, N.J.)
32. Sage Palmedo (Portland, Ore.)
34. Eliza Stone (Chicago, Ill.)
35. Ibtihaj Muhammad (Maplewood, N.J.)
41. Tara Hassett (Beaverton, Ore.)
44. Monica Aksamit (Matawan, N.J.)
55. Faizah Muhammad (Maplewood, N.J.)
68. Violet Michel (Cambridge, Mass.)
73. Daria Schneider (New York City, N.Y.)
83. Celina Merza (Wayne, N.J.)
86. Gillian Litynski (Niskayuna, N.Y.)
87. Lena Johnson (Peachtree City, Ga.)
99. Riya Dave (Ardsley, N.Y.)
110. Chloe Fox-Gitomer (Portland, Ore.)
110. Sarah Merza (Wayne, N.J.)
116. Francesca Russo (Wayne, N.J.)
119. Regina O’Brien (Wellesley, Mass.)
143. Rachel Aho (Wellesley, Mass.)

Men’s Absolute Fencing Gear® New York Grand Prix
1. Junghwan Kim (KOR)
2. Aldo Montano (ITA)
3. Diego Occhiuzzi (ITA)
3. Aron Szilagyi (HUN)
5. Bongil Gu (KOR)
6. Alexey Yakimenko (RUS)
7. Daryl Homer (Bronx, N.Y.)
8. Vincent Anstett (FRA)

68. Andrew Doddo (South Orange, N.J.)
89. Benjamin Natanzon (Manalapan, N.J.)
102. Ben Igoe (Staten Island, N.Y.)
105. Gabriel Armijo (San Diego, Calif.)
107. Eddie Chin (Livingston, N.J.)
107. Michael Mills (Short Hills, N.J.)
112. Geoffrey Loss (Laguna Beach, Calif.)
112. Peter Souders (Silver Spring, Md.)
117. Evan Prochniak (Hudson, N.H.)
120. Calvin Liang (Chandler, Ariz.)
126. Will Spear (Wynantskill, N.Y.)
134. Jonathan Fitzgerald (East Brunswick, N.J.)
135. Jonah Shainberg (Rye, N.Y.)
140. Marty Williams Jr. (Danbury, Conn.)
159. Michael Costin (Culver City, Calif.)

(Brooklyn, N.Y.) – Fencing in front of an American crowd at a Grand Prix for the first time since 2008, two-time Olympic Champion Mariel Zagunis (Beaverton, Ore.) won bronze and 2012 Olympian Daryl Homer (Bronx, N.Y.) finished seventh at the Absolute Fencing Gear® New York Grand Prix on Sunday.

For Zagunis, her top-four result would be the second individual medal of a new season that has spanned just three international tournaments.

During the early direct elimination rounds, Zagunis was all business as she picked off her opponents one by one. Although some would briefly come close to dispatching the five-time Senior World Champion, Zagunis won four straight bouts to secure her medal.

In the table of 64, 2013 Junior World Team member Yaqi Shao (CHN) held even with Zagunis at four touches each early in the bout. As she’s known to do, however, Zagunis shut down her opponent with a 4-1 run to finish the first period at 8-5. Shao narrowed the gap in the second period, but Zagunis still prevailed, 15-11.

Zagunis fenced 2014 Senior World team silver medalist Manon Brunet (FRA) in the table of 32 and built a commanding, 8-4, lead in the first period. In the second, Zagunis grew her lead to six at 11-5 and went on to take a 15-7 win, giving up just three touches in the second.

In the table of 16, Zagunis would keep Rajin Lee (KOR) at a distance as well taking an 8-4 lead at the break and winning the bout, 15-7, to advance to the quarter-finals.

Charlotte Lembach, anchor of the French squad that took silver against Team USA at the Senior Worlds in July, came within three touches of Zagunis in the second period of the quarters where the American led the bout, 11-8. Zagunis took the next two touches and finished strong with a 15-9 result.

While the first two days of competition were held at the New York Marriott at Brooklyn Bridge, the semifinal and gold medal bouts would take place at Grand Prospect Hall.

With a center finals strip laid out under a chandelier, the athletes were surrounded by three floors of tiered fans during the evening event.

Zagunis took the strip against 2011 Senior World Champion Sofya Velikaya (RUS) in the semis where she would fence the Russian for the third time this year. Although Velikaya had a baby less than a year ago, her return to competition came in March and she won the first two tournaments of the new season as warmups for this event.

Zagunis came back from a four-touch deficit at the break to tie Velikaya at 12 in the second period. To stay in contention for gold and the chance to take home the Korfanty Cup – an award given to the gold medalists and sponsored by the Mariel Zagunis Women’s Sabre Fund in honor of three-time Olympic Coach Ed Korfanty (Portland, Ore.)

Velikaya and Zagunis each scored again to set the score at 13, but Velikaya closed out with two more touches for a 15-13 victory.

“There was a lot of back and forth. Sofya and I have fenced each other many many times,” Zagunis said. “It’s just another learning experience for me and I know how to beat her so I’m just going to go home and watch the film and come back and use what I learned today for next time.”