Noah just completed another spectacular tournament day. Today's events were hosted by the Winter Garden Fencing Academy. Noah fenced in both the Y10 and Y12 foil events. There were good fencers in both age categories, but, as expected, Noah's biggest challenge came in the Y12 duels.
Noah woke up at 5:00 am, partly in anticipation of the excitement of the day ahead, partly because we had to leave at 6:30 am to get to the venue on time. Fencing kicked off at 9:00 am. After a week of very little fencing due to some minor injuries, the morning Y10 foil event proved to be an excellent warm up for the day. Noah won all of his pool bouts to earn the number one seed for the direct elimination rounds. His DE bouts were well-fought by all, but Noah swept his encounters to emerge victorious as the gold-medal winner in Y10 foil.
The Y12 foil event included several, more advanced fencers from clubs throughout central Florida. Noah won all of his pool bouts to earn a first-round bye and the number one seed in the direct elimination rounds. His first DE bout began with a bit of trepidation, but he pulled out a first-encounter win with a score of 5-3. After adapting to his opponent, he was able to clinch the win with a 5-0 score in encounter number two. The semi-final bout started well (with a 5-0 win), but became a bit more intense as Noah fell behind 1-2 in the second encounter. The tide turned, however, and Noah came away with a second-encounter win (5-2) to advance to the gold medal bout.
The Y12 gold medal bout was very intense. Noah was fencing a tall girl with very long arms. She defeated the number 2 and 3 seeds to advance to the gold medal bout. She was not easy to beat. Noah took the first encounter 5-3, but lost the second in a come-from-behind nail-biter by the score of 4-5. A few quick touches at the beginning of the third and final deciding bout gave Noah the upper hand which he did not relinquish despite some very intense fencing. Noah wins gold, 5-3, 4-5, 5-3.
Noah was very surprised to have won both gold medals today. As often happens, tournament competition and talented opponents, inspire him to exceed his own expectations. Bravo to Noah!!
We must acknowledge the great folks at the Winter Garden Fencing Academy, especially coaches Jennifer and Jason, for running a most excellent event. Thank you!! We hope to see you all again soon!
