ILLINOIS FENCERS CLUB FENCERS SWEEP DIVISION III MEN'S EPEE AT SUMMER NATIONAL QUALIFIER AND EARN MEDALS AROUND THE REGION
USA Fencing's Illinois Division held its championships for Division II and Division III (qualifiers for Summer National Championships) at New Trier High School, Northfield Campus Gym on Saturday, April 19, 2014. Fencers from the Illinois Fencers Club (IFC) swept the medals in the Division III Men's Epee with Tony Coonrod taking 1st place, A.J. Mikkelson finishing 2nd and Jakub Nowak taking 3rd . Other IFC fencers who earned medals and qualified for the Summer Nationals at the event include: A.J. Mikkelson finishing 2nd in D&Under Men's Foil, Jack Gillman 3rd in C&Under Men's Epee, Kathryn Gaertner and Nikita Jhangiani finished 2nd and 3rd in the D&Under Women's Epee. Tony Coonrod and Jakub Nowak also qualified for Division II Men's foil with their 4th and 5th place finishes. Marco Mendoza also earned his E2014 rating in foil.
Just a week earlier, more than 1,000 athletes met to compete at the USA Fencing Division I and Wheelchair National Championships and the April North American Cup from April 11-14 in Halls D and E of the Minneapolis Convention Center. Among the competitors were past Olympians, Para-Olympians and World Championship medalists vying for National Championship titles and positions on the 2014 Senior World Team over the course of the four-day event. A small group of IFC fencers competed in various events in the National Championships / North American Cup, including Maciek Zmyslowski, the only epee fencer from Illinois, who finished 41st among the very best epee fencers in the country. The IFC fencers captured two medals in the competition. Anna Paul finished 7th in DIV II Women's Epee, while Tim Glass won 6th place in Veteran 50-59 Men's Epee. Also, Jack Gillman placed 9th in DIV II Men's Epee.
Eight young IFC fencers competed at the Illinois Y14 Division Qualifiers held on April 5, 2014 at the New Trier High School Gymnasium. Niki Jhangiani captured 1st place in Y14 Women's Epee, while Andrew Vold won 1st in Y14 Men's Foil. Geeta Jhangiani finished 3rd in Y14 Women's Epee, and Peter Kulaga took 3rd in Y14 Men's Foil.
On March 23, 2014, the Illinois Fencers Club held its Y12 and D&Under - Epee / Foil / Saber Tournament at Central Community Center, Mount Prospect, IL. In the Y-12 Mixed Epee event, IFC's Peter Kulaga finished in 2nd place with Geeta Jhangiani taking 3rd. In the Y12 Mixed Foil, Peter Kulaga and Michael Romanov finished 1st and 2nd respectively. The D&Under Senior Mixed Epee event had 32 competitors, and IFC's Jakub Nowak placed 3rd, while also capturing the silver medal in the D&Under Senior Mixed Foil event, where 34 competitors participated.
IFC's Dave Swanson won silver in Veteran Combined Mixed Epee and placed 9th in Senior Mixed Epee at the Eleventh Annual Arnold Schwarzenegger Fencing Classic on March 2nd at the Greater Columbus Convention Center, Columbus, Ohio.
UPCOMING IFC FENCING TOURNAMENT
On Sunday, April 27th, the Illinois Fencers Club (IFC) will hold its 2014 Dominick Epee Challenge - the Chicago area's largest epee only fencing tournament. The tournament will take place at the Lions Recreation Center in Mount Prospect with over 110 fencers from many states, ages 12 to over 70 participating. The tournament will include competitions for Senior Women's Epee, Senior Mixed Epee, Mixed Team Epee, and Y12 (aged 12 and under) Mixed Epee.
ILLINOIS FENCERS CLUB
The Illinois Fencers Club promotes and teaches the Olympic sport of fencing to students of all ages and skill levels and provides a friendly venue for members to practice their sport. It is a member operated non-for-profit sports association that has been serving beginning, recreational, and competitive fencers for more than 40 years. The club meets in the Lions Recreation Center, 411 S. Maple St., Mt. Prospect, IL and can be found at www.IFCfencing.org and on their Facebook page.