MONTREAL, Canada, June 19, 2017—The Senior Pan-American Fencing Championships have finished in Montreal, Canada, after completing 12 events including men’s and women’s team and individual competition in foil, sabre, and epee. The event, which took place at the Centre Pierre Charbonneau in Montreal’s Olympic Park, featured about 200 fencers from throughout the Americas. The USA won eight of the 12 events, followed by Mexico and Venezuela, who each took home two gold medals.
Individual Competition. In epee, two Olympian sisters from the USA took gold and silver in the women’s event, with Kelley Hurley overcoming Courtney Hurley in the final, 15-13. Kelley Hurley defeated Brazilian Olympian Nathalie Moellhausen, 15-11, in the semi-final, while Courtney Hurley beat teammate Katharine Holmes, 15-8, in the same round. For the men, Olympic gold medallist Ruben Limardo Gascon of Venezuela prevailed over Colombia’s John Edison Rodriguez for the gold, winning by a touch, 11-10. Limardo defeated USA’s Benjamin Bratton in the semi-final, 14-7, while Rodriguez took out Brazil’s Alexandre Camargo, 15-10.
In foil, it was a USA sweep, taking all medals for both men and women. World number-two women’s foilist Lee Kiefer won gold, defeating Sabrina Massialas, 15-11, in the final. Kiefer beat Nicole Ross in the semi-final, 15-13, while Massialas defeated Margaret Lu, 12-10, in the same quadrant. For the men, Race Imboden overtook Alexander Massialas, 15-12, to win gold. Imboden beat Gerek Meinhardt in the semi-final, 15-11, while Massialas overcame World Champion Miles Chamley-Watson by a single touch, 15-14.
For sabre, Mexico’s Paola Pliego won career-best gold in the final against teammate Julieta Toledo, 15-11. Pliego beat Canadian Marissa Ponich, 15-7, in the semi-final, while Toledo defeated Venezuela’s Shia Rodriguez in the same round, 15-4. In the men’s event, it was another USA final, with Olympic silver medallist Daryl Homer beating Eli Dershwitz—who has won this event twice before—in the final, 15-10. Dershwitz beat Canada’s Joseph Polossifakis in the semi-final, 15-10, while Homer beat teammate Jeff Spear, 15-12.
Team Competition. In epee team competition, the USA women’s team had a very strong day, beating local favorite Canada in the final, 45-26, for the gold medal. Prior to the final, the USA took-out Chile, 45-19, in the semi-finals, while Canada beat Brazil, 45-36. Brazil beat Chile for the bronze, 45-24. For the men, Venezuela defeated Argentina in the final match, 45-34. The Venezuelans overcame Canada in the semi-final, 45-30, and Argentina beat USA, 45-40. The bronze medal went to Canada over USA, 41-36.
The USA women scored victory in the women’s team foil event over Canada, with a strong finish score of 45-26. The USA beat Mexico in the semi-final, 45-13, while Canada again beat Brazil, 41-32. Brazil took the bronze medal against Mexico, 45-38. For the men, USA overcame Brazil in the gold-medal match, 45-37. Prior to the final, the USA beat Puerto Rico in the semi-final, 45-15, and Brazil took-out Mexico, 45-33. Mexico took home the bronze medal against Puerto Rico, 45-32.
In sabre, Mexico scored gold, beating the USA in the women’s final, 45-40. The USA defeated Venezuela in the semi-final, 45-35, while Mexico beat Canada, 45-39. Venezuela won the bronze against Canada, 45-27. For the men, the USA was victorious over Canada in the gold round, winning 45-29. The USA also beat Colombia in the semi-final, 45-23, while Canada overcame Venezuela, 45-34. Venezuela took bronze against Colombia, 45-35.
Final results and details may be found on the FIE Web site, here.