In a men’s field of 164, Italy’s Guillaume Bianchi captured gold at Polideportivo 1 in Lima, Peru, defeating Kirill Borodachev, competing as an Individual Neutral Athlete, 15–12 in the final. It marked Bianchi’s second consecutive Grand Prix victory, following his triumph in Turin, Italy in February 2026.
The second-ranked Italian advanced to the final with a 15–10 semifinal win over Alexander Choupenitch of Czechia. His toughest test, however, came in the quarterfinals, where he narrowly held off 17-year-old Shing Him Harris Ho of Hong Kong, China, 15–13—after nearly surrendering a commanding 10–1 lead.
In the other semifinal, Borodachev delivered one of the tournament’s biggest surprises, dominating two-time Olympic Champion Ka Long Cheung of Hong Kong, China (Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024), 15–3 in an unexpected bout. Cheung and Choupenitch each earned bronze medals.
One of the day’s major upsets occurred in the round of 64, where fifth-ranked and Paris 2024 silver medallist Filippo Macchi of Italy fell to Japan’s Kyosuke Matsuyama, 15–10.
Final Results – Men’s Individual Foil
Guillaume Bianchi (ITA, gold); Kirill Borodachev (_AIN, silver); Ka Long Cheung (HKG, bronze); Alexander Choupenitch (CZE, bronze); Chun Yin Ryan Choi (HKG); Nick Itkin (USA); Shing Him Harris Ho (HKG); Kyosuke Matsuyama (JPN).
In the women’s event, two-time World Champion Alice Volpi (Wuxi, China 2018; Milan, Italy 2023) overcame a field of 134 to claim her third Grand Prix title, adding to an already remarkable résumé that includes nine World Cup gold medals. In the final, she defeated Paris 2024 silver medallist Lauren Scruggs of the United States, 15–11.
Volpi, 33, advanced through a series of tightly contested bouts. In the semifinals, she edged 18-year-old American Katerina Lung 15–14 in a back-and-forth contest, with her deceptive beat attack proving decisive. Earlier, in the round of 16, she delivered one of the highlights of the tournament—a dramatic 15–14 victory over fellow Italian and two-time World Champion Arianna Errigo (Kazan, Russia 2014; Budapest, Hungary 2013), sealing the match with a brilliant counter-riposte.
Scruggs earned her place in the final by rallying from an early 4–0 deficit to defeat Italy’s Martina Favaretto 15–12. Favaretto and Lung shared the bronze medals.
The tournament’s biggest upset came in the round of 32, where world No. 1, two-time defending Olympic Champion (Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024), and current World Champion (Tbilisi, Georgia 2025) Lee Kiefer of the United States was convincingly defeated by Ukraine’s Olga Sopit, 15–7.
Final Results – Women’s Individual Foil
Alice Volpi (ITA, gold); Lauren Scruggs (USA, silver); Katerina Lung (USA, bronze); Martina Favaretto (ITA, bronze); Flora Pásztor (HUN); Leonie Ebert (GER); Arianna Errigo (ITA); Irene Bertini (ITA).
