USA: FENCING: World Champion Mariel Zagulis, takes on world number two Olga Kharlan at special fencing exhibition in New York

Record ID: 376763

  • Title: USA: FENCING: World Champion Mariel Zagulis, takes on world number two Olga Kharlan at special fencing exhibition in New York
  • Date: 19th November 2010
  • Summary: ZAGUNIS ADJUSTING HELMUT BEFORE TAKING NEXT POINT, 14-10 ZAGUNIS (SOUNDBITE) (English) WORLD SABER CHAMPION MARIEL ZAGUNIS SAYING: "You know, just incredible. And this past Worlds was very historic for us. So it's like, it's so cool to be part of that U.S. fencing group that it's just like. . . just, I'm like getting worked up thinking about it. It's just like so amazing
  • Embargoed: 4th December 2010 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Usa
  • Country: USA
  • Topics: Sports
  • Reuters ID: LVA3YPQA2LASUE16DAZGZJ3NZ13J
  • Story Text: Only a week after defending her title, American Mariel Zagunis repeated the feat that earned her the World Championships by besting world number two, Ukrainian Olga Kharlan, at a special exhibition in New York on Wednesday (November 17).
    The two best sabre wielding women crossed swords at a special tournament in the Big Apple to benefit American Olympic hopefuls with almost the exact scoreline as their duel in Paris on November 6. Zagunis won 15-10 as Kharlan dropped a point from their previous meeting.
    "My strategy is to be everything. It's really important to be unpredictable, because if you're only offensive fencer or you're only a defensive fencer, your opponent can use that against you," explained Zagunis about her plan remain on top through the London 2012 Olympics.
    The 25-year old from Beaverton, Oregon already has two individual Olympic gold medals from Athens and Beijing to go with her two world championships, not to mention her team medals in the sabre. Her surprise win in Athens when she was only 19 marked a turning point for the sport in the U.S. -- particularly with her favorite blade, ending a 100-year gold medal drought at the Olympics.
    "It's an amazing feeling to kind of be this trailblazer for American fencing. Um, luckily, I mean I guess right place at the right time. you know, we started getting results. . . I started getting results, kind of, as I was getting more mature as a fencer," said Zagunis.
    The champion credits her parents with providing her with the focus and determination to become an Olympic athlete and her two brothers with the enthusiasm to take on the challenge of fencing. Robert and Cathy Zagunis rowed for the U.S. team at the Montreal Olympics in 1976, enshrining a special place for the Games in family memory. It was Mariel's brothers and their penchant for sword fighting which prompted the family to search for a local fencing club to direct their childrens' energy.
    "Having my parents be Olympians that always kind of instilled in me that being an Olympian is something really special. It's something unique. It's something that I want to do, and be -- like my parents, you know," explained Zagunis. "Having them have been there and done that kind of made it more realistic for me to be like, 'I want to do that. If they can do it, I can do it, of course.' You know? And um, so I think that made it a lot easier for me once I found fencing to be like, 'this is going to be the sport I'm going to be an Olympian in. This is where I want to go with this.' And it has been the individual performance of Zagunis that has been a catalyst for the improvement of the sport in the U.S. which saw the Americans win six fencing medals at the Beijing Games, only one behind the traditional European powerhouse of Italy and two more than France, including a sweep of the individual medals in Zagunis' discipline. The trend continued at this year's World Championships with the U.S. giving a strong performance and making them strong contenders looking ahead to the Olympics in London in 2012.
    "You know, just incredible. And this past Worlds was very historic for us. So it's like, it's so cool to be part of that U.S. fencing group that it's just like. . . just, I'm like getting worked up thinking about it. It's just like so amazing to part of this writing history with my teammates and stuff. It's so cool, and we are a force to be reckoned with, and now we're really established. American fencing is really taking off," exclaimed Zagunis.
    "The goal is London 2012 -- the big, big goal right now. Yeah. So, am really excited," she added.
    And judging by recent history, the path to the top of the podium in London will go through Kharlan. For the past two years, Zagunis has had to beat the now 20-year old Ukrainian to win her World Championships, with Kharlan closing the gap each time.
    It will give them both something to think about over the winter break before the 2011 season kicks off in January, with Olympic qualification on the line.
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