Japan edged Canada 33-32 in a hard-fought match to capture the bronze medal in women's team foil fencing on Thursday, August 1 at the Grand Palais in Paris. The result gave Japan its first medal ever in the category.
There was a dramatic ending to the contest, as Japan took a 32-29 lead into the last match between Yuka Ueno and Eleanor Harvey on the Podium Piste. The Canadian scored three touches to Ueno's one, and cut the deficit to one at 32-31 with 49 seconds left. But Ueno held on for the one-point victory to get the bronze.
"I couldn't perform the way I wanted to in the individual foil competition," Ueno was quoted as saying by Kyodo News. "So I was determined to get a medal in the team event no matter what.
"I gave everything I had."
Komaki Kikuchi posted a match-high nine touches in her 9-8 win over Yunjia Zhang to help secure the bronze. Sera Azuma was the fourth member of Team Japan.
In the women's fencing team foil final, the United States defeated Italy 45-39 to capture its first medal in the event.
Fencing Success Story: The Path to the Bronze Medal
Japan's path to the podium began with a 45-30 triumph over Poland earlier in the day in the table of 8. Karin Miyawaki recorded nine touches to help power the Hinomaru into the semifinals with a 9-5 win over Hanna Lyczbinska in the Yellow Piste.
In the semifinals, Japan lost 45-39 to Italy on the Blue Piste despite Ueno registering a match-high nine touches in a 9-5 victory over Alice Volpi.
The Key to Japan's Fencing Victory Over Canada
After the bronze-medal match, Japan team foil fencing coach Franck Boidin shared his thoughts on the key to beating Canada to secure the win.
"We played Canada twice before the Olympics, and each time it was a close match," Boidin was quoted as saying by NHK.
Team Japan's coach since 2017 then said, "Our opponents tend to [compete] more defensively, and I told the Japanese players to go on the offensive and avoid being attacked by the Canadians as much as possible. Ueno's legs of steel held up in the end, and that was the reason we won the match."
The veteran mentor also praised the Japanese athletes for their effort at the Olympics.
"They are very hard-working and serious," the French coach said, according to NHK, before adding, "they work hard every day to give their all. The frustration of losing [in] the individual competition led to the team result."
Did You Know?
At the pandemic-delayed Tokyo Olympics, Japan finished in sixth place in the women's team foil competition in 2021.
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Author: Jack Gallagher
The author is a veteran sports journalist as well as one of the world's foremost figure skating experts. Find articles and podcasts by Jack on his author page, and find him on X (formerly Twitter) @sportsjapan.
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