Leipzig 2005

12 • ESCRIME INTERNATIONALE
LES CHAMPIONNATS DU MONDE DE LEIPZIG • THE LEIPZIG WORLD
The 2005 World Championships held in
Leipzig confirmed the exceptional talent
of great fencers, already recognised in
the past. This was the case for Russian
épée fencer Kolobkov, Italian foil fencers
Vezzali and Sanzo, Romanian sabre
fencer Covaliu and Russia’s Podzniakov
(outstanding in the team competition),
and even French sabre fencer Anne-Lise
Touya who, although only 24 years old,
has already won two gold medals in
World Championships. Overall, 15
countries won the 42 medals on offer.
This represents a traditional distribution
between Europe, Asia and America.
With 10 medals (4 of them gold), France
dominated the event, ahead of Russia
with 7 medals (2 gold, 3 silver and
2 bronze) and Italy with 6 medals (2
gold, 2 silver and 2 bronze). Germany
(2 silver and 2 bronze medals) was
hoping for a better result as they had
the home advantage. With one single
medal (silver in men’s foil), China was
outclassed by another Asian nation:
South Korea won the women’s foil
competition and provided Asia with the
first ever senior team title in a world
championship. Finally, the United
States, very subdued during the previous
five days, made a partial recovery with
the last minute gold medal won by
their women sabre fencers in the final
event of the 2005 world championships.
More generally, the technical
innovations in foil gave this traditional
weapon back its original purpose:
priority given to the “in-line” position.
The German organisers should also be
congratulated: the room’s display, its
decor and specific lighting made it
possible for the spectators to attend a
very well-directed show, and for
television viewers to get passionate
about fencing. This is also due to the
talent of the television director who was
able to find new camera angles to show
the emotion on the fencers’ faces.
Similarly, the possibility of following the
world championships live on the
website of the FIE was a great success. It
is now up to Turin to take over and
address the challenge
of upping the ante in 2006.
THE CROWNING OF LEGENDARY CHAMPIONS
THE BENEFITS OF AGE
They are in their prime. Their fencing technique
hasn’t aged one bit. Their names:
Pavel Kolobkov, 36, Valentina Vezzali, 31 or
Stanislaw Podzniakov, 33. They are épée, foil or
sabre fencers and, in Leipzig, they reached the
highest step on the podium, thus representing
the glory of being in their thirties. Russian épée
fencer Pavel Kolobkov is a phenomenon in
himself. Already world champion in 1993,
1994 and 2002, 2000 Olympic champion in
Sydney, he seems so resilient that he has the
physical appearance and fencing technique of
a younger champion. This is probably his most
impressive feature: time seems to have no
impact on him. In Leipzig, he certainly did not
outclass his rivals: 15 – 14 victory in the first
elimination round against Italy’s Alessandro
Bossalini, 11-10 in the last sixteen against
Germany’s Sven Schmid, 11-10 again in the
semi-final against Holland’s Bas Verwijlen, and
15-14 (really 18-17 if you take into consideration
the last three double hits) in the final
against France’s Fabrice Jeannet. But each time
he was able to seize the opportunity at the
right moment, and this has nothing to do with
a mere streak of good luck. He has an innate
sense of the right tactical move at the right
time. He can imagine anything, create anything,
and hope to do anything as technically
he knows it all.
Future generations will be sorry not to have
witnessed the art of Pavel Kolobkov. He is a
model for everyone. The other hero of the épée
final, France’s Fabrice Jeannet (world champion
in 2003), equally magnificent, paid him a glowing
tribute in French newspaper L’Equipe of
17 October, for everyone to read: “His record
of achievements is one of the most impressive,
■ Finale au fleuret féminin par équipes : à gauche la
Coréenne Jung Kil Ok, à droite la Roumaine Cristina Ghita.
■ Final of the women’s team competition in foil: Korea’s
Jung Kil Ok, left, and Romania’s Cristina Ghita, right.
■ Final al florete femenino por equipos: a la izquierda la
Coreana Jung Kil Ok, a la derecha la Rumana Cristina Ghita.
if not the best, in fencing. He has been around
for twenty years, he always gets the results, he
is always in great shape, and he has won everything,
and done so with style. He is in control
of all aspects of the game, both technically and
physically, he understands it all. Therefore I
cannot but admire him. He is a pleasure to
watch when he fights, he is highly efficient.
Fighting against him is a joy, even though I
have never managed to beat him”. After a
total of twelve double hits, all cleverly provoked,
Pavel Kolobkov was able to achieve his
fourth individual title and everything that goes
with it.
In Leipzig, however, Fabrice Jeannet, 23, added
the gold of the team competition to the silver
of the individual event, with an admirable and
unusual sense of fair play. In the quarterfinal,
fate had played a cruel trick on him by drawing
him against his elder brother Jérôme, an excellent
fencer himself for the past few years, but
who seemed petrified by this battle against his
brother. Partnered with Eric Boisse and Ulrich
Robeiri, the Jeannet brothers played a major
part, four days later, in France’s world title in
the team event, following the Olympic title
won last year in Athens. This time, youth (the
other three French fencers are under 25) prevailed
and the demonstration was just as conclusive:
they were technically and collectively
superior and consistent. French épée naturally
rose to the level of the best teams of all times.
Its valiant knights managed to wipe out all