USA Fencing Stars Lee Kiefer and Nick Itkin Following Grand Prix Sweep, Reign Supreme in World Rankings

Tokyo Olympic gold medalist Lee Kiefer and Tokyo bronze medalist Nick Itkin continue to showcase their dominance in the fencing realm. After securing their berth for the U.S. team for the Paris Olympic Games, Lee and Nick have now left the world in awe with their Grand Prix victory in the Women’s and Men’s Absolute Fencing Grand Prix at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center.

The 2024 FIE Foil Grand Prix Washington D.C. event took place from March 15 to March 17, where 170 women and 231 men participated in the competition. However, the most accomplished USA foil fencers shone brightly in the competition, winning the gold medal in the championship. They are now making headlines for their notable spot in the USA FIE foil rankings list.

USA Fencing cherishes the New FIE foil team US rankers

After their magnificent Grand Prix triumph, USA Fencing celebrated the victory of USA’s fencing virtuosos Lee Kiefer and Nick Itkin on its official X handle. The FIE foil rankings list, recently released by the FIE, reveals that Lee Kiefer and Nick Itkin have secured the top spot. USA Fencing posted the picture of the USA fencing stars, captioning the post as, “New FIE foil rankings just dropped, and look who’s on top…”.

In the recent picture, USA Fencing also mentioned “World number ones” in the post. Kiefer defeated Italy’s two-time world champion Arianna Errigo in the final bout of the women’s individual foil, securing the gold medal with a 15-4 score. Meanwhile, Itkin achieved victory over France’s two-time world champion Enzo Lefort with a 15-12 score in the final bout of the men’s individual foil.

Lee Kiefer and Nick Itkin are now training to clinch the gold in the Paris Olympics. They are the first fencers to make it to the US team for this summer.

Fencing phenoms on the Road to the Olympics

Lee Kiefer has several accolades to her name. In addition to winning gold at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, she is a three-time Olympian and a ten-time team Pan American champion. At 29 years old, she is poised to compete in her fourth Olympics while holding the top spot globally in foil fencing. Also, she secured bronze medals at the world championships in both 2022 and 2023.

Read more: Road to Paris 2024: USA Fencing Teams Shines Bright by Securing Double Qualification to Olympics

The 24-year-old Itkin has now secured his second Olympic qualification. He was previously a part of the bronze-medal foil team in Tokyo. As he competed individually in Tokyo, he was eliminated in the second round. However, since then, Itkin has risen to become a top contender in the last two world championships. He became the first US man to claim consecutive individual medals at the World Championships.

With their impressive achievements, Kiefer and Itkin are ready to make history again.

Also Read : USA Fencing Highlights Record-Breaking Fencer’s Milestones During Women’s History Month To Inspire Future Generations