Peter Westbrook, Rudolf Karpati and Helene Mayer, former champions of Fencing
Peter Westbrook, a former sabre fencing champion from America was born on 16 April, 1952. Westbrook was the winner of a bronze medal in the Sabre Individual's event at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games.
In the Pan American Games, he won two Sabre Individual and one Sabre Team gold medals, two Sabre Individual and four Sabre Team silver medals and one Sabre Individual bronze medal.
He is the founder and executive director of Peter Westbrook Foundation and a five-time member of United States Olympic fencing team, six-time member of United States Pan American Games fencing team, eleven-time member of United States World Championships
team and member of United States National Team from 1989-95.
In 1991, he launched the non-profit organisation PWF that made use of fencing as a medium in growing life and academic ability for the youth from the underserved society in New York City. PWF is now producing numerous Senior and Junior world fencing teams.
In 1997, the book, 'Harnessing Anger' was written about Westbrook’s life story.
Rudolf Karpati is one of the few successful fencers from Hungary winning at individual fencing, Olympics and the World Championships. Karpati has won a total of six gold medals in the Olympic Games, two in the Sabre Individual and four in the Sabre Team.
In the World Championships, he succeeded in winning seven gold medals, three silver medals and two bronze medals. He was honoured by receiving The Hungarian Sportsman of The Year award in 1959 and 1972.
Helene Mayer, the German, was the most popular Women Foil fencing champion in history and one of the 100 female fencers of the 20th century. She was a member of the German Olympic National Team. At a very younger age, she won the German Women’s
Foils Championship in 1924 and competed in the individual foil games at the 1928 Olympic Games, winning the gold medal. In 1929-31, she was the European champion. Mayer was the silver medalist of 1936 Summer Olympics and the six time champion in the German
Championships. Mayer was inducted into the United States Fencing Association Hall of Fame in 1963 and later become an American Citizen. The success of her fencing career consists of winning the Women’s Foil Championship eight times. She later returned to
Germany where she died of cancer on 15 October, 1953 at the age of 43.
Numerous fencers have made history through their dynamic and professional fencing styles; Ramon Fonst Segundo is one of them. He has won four gold medals and one silver medal in Olympic Games. Fonst was the first Cuban fencer in history who won a gold medal
in the Olympic fencing games. He won his first gold medal at the 1900 Olympics in the Epee Individual and the silver medal in the Amateurs Masters Epee. He won all three gold medals at the 1904 Olympics in Foil and Epee Individuals and team foil games. Due
to his unique techniques he had won many matches without receiving a single touch. Upon retirement, he became the President of Cuba’s National Olympic Committee.
There are several other fencing stars that made history due to their extraordinary achievements. It is very disappointing that fencing does not get the coverage and importance as other sports in the Olympics, due to the lack of awareness of this exciting
sport.
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