The two-time Olympic Champion, Mariel Zagunis seals gold medal during 2011 Pan American Games
The two-time Olympic Champion, Mariel Zagunis, sealed the gold medal in the Women’s Sabre Individual contest on the second day of the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara. In this way, Zagunis managed to secure the second gold medal for the United States.
The United States Fencing Association sent three athletes to compete for each contest. The Olympic Champion has won three straight gold medals in the Pan American Games. The athletes sent by United States Fencing Association were those, who had earned many
medals during the Senior World Fencing Championships.
Zagunis is the Sabre fencer, who had captured the title in the Women’s Sabre almost in all kinds of Fencing tournaments including World Championship tournaments and World Cup events. She became the Olympic Champion in 2004 when she won the gold medal in
the Athens Olympic Games.
The Olympic Champion commented on her medal victory in the Pan American Championships and said, “I’m a competitive person, so I’m here to have fun, but, at the same time, I came here to win too. I love having this mini-Olympics experience, particularly being
with the other athletes and living in the athlete’s village.”
Zagunis, eliminated her opponents in the previous tables, faced her team-mate, Ibtihaj Muhammad in the quarter-final bout. It was not a difficult bout for the Olympic Champion as she dropped Ibtihaj with an amazing score-line of 4-15 touches with a nine-point
lead. In the semi-final, Cuban Yaritza Goulet faced the Olympic Champion and she was eliminated within scoring seven points.
The strongest bout in the final was played between the Olympic Champion, Zagunis and a two-time Olympian Alejandra Benitez from Venezuela. There was a time in the final contest when Benitez tied the bout with the score of 13-13. In the last minute of the
final bout, Zagunis scored two consecutive hits and secured the final bout to win the Gold medal of the day.
The United States squad has won three gold medals and one silver medal in the Pan American competition. The first medal was captured by the Foil fencer, Lee Kiefer, the second was grabbed by Zagunis while Alexander Massialas is the Men’s Foil Fencer who
earned the third gold medal in the Pan American competitions.
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