In an action-packed weekend, with five of our six teams competing, Team USA showed up bigtime, earning three individual medals and one team bronze.
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — While the Super Bowl captivated audiences worldwide, USA Fencing’s athletes were busy making headlines of their own, securing four pivotal medals in a critical weekend of competition as the Olympic countdown intensifies.
From Italy to Georgia and Spain to Peru, American fencers showed exciting skill and impressive teamwork, further cementing their status as top contenders for the upcoming Olympic Games.
Women’s and Men’s Foil: Notre Dame Grads Kiefer and Itkin Grab Medals in Italy
At the Women’s and Men’s Foil Grand Prix in Turin, Italy, Lee Kiefer OLY of the Bluegrass Fencers’ Club, a Notre Dame alum and the reigning world No. 1, clinched her fifth Grand Prix gold, marking her first gold medal of the season. Kiefer’s victory adds to her impressive tally of 10 individual gold medals at the senior FIE level.
Kiefer, who sits first on the women’s foil point standings list for Team USA, will look to carry this momentum into the next two tournaments for her weapon: Feb. 22–25 in Cairo, Egypt, and March 15–17 in Washington, D.C.
Nick Itkin OLY, also a Notre Dame graduate, secured his first individual World Cup or Grand Prix medal since 2020. Like Kiefer, Itkin is focused on those upcoming foil tournaments as he hopes to earn a spot at his second Olympic Games.
Men’s Saber: All-Harvard Squad Wins Team Bronze
In the Men’s Saber World Cup in Tbilisi, Georgia, the squad of Eli Dershwitz OLY, Filip Dolegiewicz, Mitchell Saron and Colin Heathcock earned a bronze medal, further solidifying the team’s hopes of qualifying for the Paris Olympic Games.
Our Men’s Saber team entered the competition in Tbilisi as one of the world’s four best teams in the weapon, meaning they’re in position to qualify a full team for Paris. Sunday’s result ensures they’ll remain in those coveted places with only two World Cups remaining: March 1–3 in Padua, Italy, and March 22–24 in Budapest, Hungary.
This particular foursome shares more than a bronze medal from Tbilisi; they’re also all connected to the successful NCAA fencing team at Harvard University.
Dershwitz, the 2023 world champion, graduated from Harvard in 2019 after winning two NCAA championships. Dolegiewicz, a 2023 Harvard grad, won the 2022 NCAA championship, the same year fellow 2023 graduate Saron won the Ivy League title.
And Heathcock, the two-time Junior World Champion in the weapon, announced he’s planning to attend Harvard in the fall of 2024.
Women’s Saber: Bronze for Harvard Grad Tartakovsky
Elizabeth Tartakovsky, another Harvard standout, secured a bronze medal at the Women’s Saber World Cup in Lima, Peru. Tartakovsky's achievement not only marks her second career World Cup bronze but also enhances her prospects for Olympic qualification with Team USA.
In the team event in Lima, the squad of Maia Chamberlain, Lola Possick, Magda Skarbonkiewicz and Tartakovsky battled to a sixth-place finish. Importantly, that was above any rivals from the Americas zone, ensuring they’re still in Olympic qualifying position.
Women’s Epee: Top-Four Finish for Team USA
At the Women’s Epee World Cup in Barcelona, Spain, the team of Anne Cebula, Hadley Husisian, Kasia Nixon and Margherita Guzzi Vincenti, finished fourth in the team event. Their performance against formidable opponents underscores their position as the top nation in the Americas zone, with high hopes for the final World Cup in Nanjing, China.
Full Individual Results
Women’s Foil Individual Results #
Gold: Lee Kiefer OLY
16th: Maia Weintraub
17th: Jacqueline Dubrovich OLY
18th: Lauren Scruggs
21st: Katerina Lung
38th: Zander Rhodes
52nd: Sabrina Massialas OLY
68th: Stefani Deschner
71st: Jaelyn Liu
72nd: Sara Taffel
88th: Emily Jing
161st: Alina Lee
Men’s Foil Individual Results #
Bronze: Nick Itkin OLY
17th: Alexander Massialas OLY
18th: Gerek Meinhardt OLY
22nd: Miles Chamley-Watson OLY
31st: James Bourtis
48th: Chase Emmer
63rd: Marcello Olivares
87th: Ethan Gassner
93rd: Sidarth Kumbla
106th: Jack Oursler
172nd: Jeidus Deseranno
193rd: Spencer Burke
Women’s Saber Individual Results #
Bronze: Elizabeth Tartakovsky
17th: Magda Skarbonkiewicz
24th: Tatiana Nazlymov
38th: Zander Rhodes
42nd: Maia Chamberlain
30th: Siobhan Sullivan
74th: Lola Possick
77th: Nora Burke
85th: Jadeyn Williams
105th: Atara Greenbaum
108th: Kara Linder
109th: Chloe Fox-Gitomer
Men’s Saber Individual Results #
8th: Filip Dolegiewicz
9th: Eli Dershwitz OLY
12th: Colin Heathcock
28th: Daryl Homer OLY
30th: Lev BenAvram
40th: Mitchell Saron
54th: William Morrill
71st: Antonio Heathcock
73rd: Andrew Doddo
80th: Andrew Mackiewicz OLY
107th: Grant Williams
116th: Khalil Thompson OLY
Women’s Epee Individual Results #
23rd: Kat Holmes OLY
30th: Isis Washington
50th: Hadley Husisian
56th: Kai Liu
65th: Amanda Pirkowski
67th: Margherita Guzzi Vincenti
70th: Anne Cebula
77th: Natalia Toby
115th: Kasia Nixon
150th: Miriam Grady
209th: Kyle Fallon
292nd: Tanishka Padhye
