France just won two gold medals, one after the other, at the World Fencing Championships in Cairo. France’s Issaura Thibos was crowned world champion on Tuesday (July 19th). A few minutes later, Frenchman Romain Kanonni became the world champion at the Ibi. Maxime Bianfitti won the silver medal at Saber on Monday.
A year after winning the surprise gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics (OG), Cannon went on to claim the world title thanks to a victory over Japan’s Kazuyasu Minobi in the final, 15 to 12. After sharing his joy with the other fencers in the French delegation, the French rose to the top Stairs on the podium, they were decorated with a gold medal and an Egyptian nemes, the headdress of the pharaohs.
At 25, the world number one in his major confirms his dominance on the international saga. Two years after the Paris Olympics, he also proved that his unexpected nickname for Tokyo was not the result of the providential alignment of the planets, but rather a sign of ascending power.
“I understood my change of status, Captured last month. I don’t go into competition thinking that I’m an Olympic champion and that I suddenly deserve to win. A person can beat anyone, especially in the art of fencing. You have to keep that in mind. »
He, who has never touched the World Cup podium with his sword, has collected three of them since his coronation in Japan. His only move came at the European Championships in Antalya last month, where he was eliminated in the first round. In Cairo, he avenged his European Championship top scorer, Belgian Nesir Loyola, by sending him off to sudden death (15-14) in the semi-final, the match in which the Frenchman was most feared.
After the bronze, silver and gold of Thepos
Moments ago, Ysaora Thibus was a role model in the chip final. A bronze medalist in 2017 and a silver medalist in 2018, Thibus this time took an extra step to finally win the gold medal on the world stage. After an ankle scare in the quarter-finals, the 30-year-old fencer beat world number four, Italian Ariana Irigo, 15 touches to 10 in the final.
And so Guadeloupe brilliantly recovers after her disappointment, in the summer of 2021, at the Tokyo Olympics, when she was released in the second round of the singles tournament. Even the silver medal won by both teams did not ease his ordeal. Psychologically affected, it took her four months to resume training, she told AFP last month:
“I didn’t really want to hear about fencing anymore. I was psychologically exhausted after these games. I made the decision to put things in place to continue until the Paris Olympics and found the desire to train again, and the joy of training. Not all the time, but in general yes.” »
Ysaora Thibus is the first French fencer to be crowned world champion since Marie-Chantal Demael in 1971. The two winners on that day are France’s first two world titles. The Blues won three medals in total after Maxime Bianfitti’s silver at the sword on Monday. They hope to continue that good momentum, starting Wednesday, during the Men’s Sword and Sword Finals.
#Fencing #Frenchman #Romain #Kanoni #Issaoora #Thibos #world #champions #Cairo
