The 2026 Summer National Championships are in the books. It was a historic run for our club.
The Foil Pre-Nationals camp theme was to “Win the Moment,” to identify and attend to the most important information in any given space and time. That theme should carry through every moment of your fencing career: no matter the time of season or activity you’re engaging in.
Nationals is like a marathon of sprints, so it takes a bit of time and reflection to consider the results in totality. Let’s recap the top performances:
Bonnie had already clinched Vet-60 Women’s Foil World Team selection coming into Nationals. Given past performance, top-8 wasn’t our goal, but is a great result by any objective standard. We have a clear picture of the work for World Championships, so mission accomplished.
Kathryn had a similar road in Women’s Sabre; already clinched, and lost a tight bout to the winner of the event in the top-8. In Women’s Foil, however, she saved the best for last, making a semifinal. Two semis and a 5th qualify for Worlds nearly every time. However, Polina McGrath from Michigan finished with an identical record. With a two way tie, she had to fence for it. Kathryn started down 0-4 before settling into the initial plan, and won decisively, 10-5 to qualify for the final Team USA spot.
Ben caught a few snags in U-19 pools, setting up a tough pathway. By focusing when it mattered most, he won two 15-14 DEs early on, and then settled into his A game, limiting his top-16 and top-8 opponents to single digits and finishing 3rd in Junior Men’s Foil. We’ll miss Ben as he heads off to Columbia University, but are excited that he's starting this Junior season with a great result!
Kayla had a slow start in Div1-A, dropping three in pools despite good movement and setups. Her pathway was tough, but by digging deep and focusing on her delivery, she won 15-14 against the 13th and 20th seed in the event. She eventually fell in the top 8 to the same opponent who knocked her out of Junior, improving the margin from 5-15 to 13-15.
In Junior Men’s Foil, Marat made the top-64, earning a spot on the National Junior Points Standings. His coursework at UNC made it impossible to train or qualify for more events during fall semester, but he really put in the time at the club in 2026, and it paid off.
Emily had a standout week, maintaining a positive indicator in a Sr Team event, winning a DE in Cadet, earning top 64 in Y-14 and finishing top 32 in Y-12. That was a great tournament run, and experience gained here creates a flywheel effect.
Julia is our Ironwoman of the week. She fenced seven (!!) events from Y-14 to Div 3. You only do this when you’re not chasing a result and have the legs and mental stamina for it; and treating Nationals as a training camp full of high-pressure situations. The result: she made the 20% cut in every event, finished top 64 in Y-14, Div 3, Div 1-A and top 128 in Cadet. The number of situations and repetitions she experienced will accelerate her improvement. Don’t try this at home.
Milestones:
- First national event: Sienna (Y12WS), Addie (Y12WF), Clayton (Y12MF)
- First national win: Rachel (D3WF)
- First national cut: Olivia (Y12WF). Sienna (Y12WS)
- First national DE win: Isabella (Y14WF), Addie (Y10WF)
- First national points: Marat (JrMF), Julia (Y14WF)
- First national medal: Kayla (D1AWF)
By the Numbers:
- 14 different athletes
- 5 Individual Medals
- 3 World Championship Selections
- 2 Team Medals
- 1 match fenced after the event was over (100% success rate)
Gratitude:
I want to thank everybody who contributed to this run:Assistant Coaches Christina, Vicky, and Diana for pouring your hearts and minds into the club, keeping the fires burning while the gang is traveling, and helping build a great training environment.
Kathryn, for sprinting directly from fencing to coach the multi-floor scramble that was Cadet and Y-14 Women's Foil, and still getting invoices out on time.
Neighbors. We get recommendations and guest athletes from Jen and Toomey at Charlotte Fencing Academy, Von at Precision Swordcraft, Kevin and Randall at Greensboro Fencing Academy, and Gerhard and David at All-American Fencing Academy. Thanks for sending athletes who are ambitious, open-minded, and love the sport and trusting we’ll take care of them.
Parents, for keeping us fed, caffeinated, showing up to support your other RTF athletes. Every day the refs (and college coaches) go out for dinner and discuss insane behaviors they see from coaches and parents. They’re not talking about you.
Nationals is the end of the Youth season, but it’s the beginning of the season for Cadet / Junior / Division 1, and the final sprint for Veterans. Rest and recover, and come back energized and ready to go.
Starting today, we’re focusing on the next target: building a strong foundation for next season’s performance. Getting stronger, more athletic, and tightening up our basics is going to be our primary focus for July and August. Let’s put up milestones and knock them down together.