Rebecca Ward successfully defended the Cadet World Champion title by crushing Russian sabrist Anna Illarionova by a score of 15-4. At the end of the first break, Ward had already established control of the bout with an 8-1 lead.
In the Cadet Men’s Foil competition, Enzo Castellani fell just short of the gold medal bout, losing to Italian Tommaso Lari 15-12 in the semifinal match. Castellani of the United States and Cedrik Serri of France earned bronze medals.
Rebecca Ward was the Triple Crown winner in 2006-2007, having won the Cadet, Junior, and Senior world titles. She has the most international championships of any United States Fencer and now has back to back Cadet titles.
Caroline Vloka, last years Cadet silver medalist, ran into trouble in direct eliminations and was knocked out early, placing 39th. Monica Akismet made it to the top 16 and came in 13th overall.
US Cadet foilist Gerek Meinhardt was seeded 8th going into the elimination rounds but fell early in the round of 32 and placed 18th. He was joined in the top 32 by Ariel Desmet, who placed 22nd.
Action resumes tomorrow with Cadet Men’s Sabre and Cadet Women’s Epee.
