Italian Alice Volpi (left) and French Ysaora Thibus, in the team foil final, at the Worlds in Milan (Italy), July 29, 2023. ANDREAS SOLARO / AFP
Two finals and two defeats. The French foil fencers lost to Italy (45-39) in the final of the team event of the World Fencing Championships, Saturday July 29, in Milan (Italy). A few tens of minutes later, it was the turn of the French swordsmen to bite the dust (45-31) in the final, still against the Transalpins.
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These two silver medals are the fourth and fifth podiums for French fencing in these Worlds, the last before the Paris 2024 Olympics.
They are added to the coronation of Marie-Florence Candassamy in epee and the bronze medals of Romain Cannone, still in epee, and Enzo Lefort, in foil.
In front of furious tifosi celebrating each touch as a goal at nearby San Siro, Ysaora Thibus came up against the defense of the last Italian torchbearer Francesca Palumbo, a substitute launched to keep the gap (40-34).
Swordsmen miss the hat-trick
It will therefore be necessary to wait another two years and the next Worlds to hope to see French foil fencers crowned world team champions and succeed their illustrious predecessors of 1951.
The French swordsmen failed to achieve the treble after their 2019 and 2022 titles. Hugues Obry’s men missed their match, unable to come back after a stint lost by Romain Cannone (6-2), who left them at 15-11.
