Shamei claims epee title

Egypt’s Youssef Shamel produced a vibrant and tactical masterclass to claim the Junior Men’s Epee individual world title at the Rio Junior & Cadet Fencing World Championships.

Currently ranked 20th in the world and the 2025 Junior African Champ third man from his nation to win this title after Mohamed Yasseen’s triumph in Plovdiv in 2023 and Mahmoud Elsayed title last year in Wuxi.

Shamel’s path to the gold began with a significant internal challenge, as he defeated teammate and World No. 4, Osama, in the round of 128. He continued his momentum with clinical victories over Japan’s Tojima (15-9), Australia’s Robinson (15-12), and Poland’s Wojciechowski (15-9).

After a tight 15-13 quarterfinal win over Great Britain’s Lumineau, Shamel faced Greece’s Artemios Tzovanis in the semi-finals. While the score remained deadlocked after the first three minutes, Shamel emerged in the second period with heightened intensity, securing a comfortable 15-7 win.

In the final, Shamel’s exuberant energy, arriving on the piste smiling and jumping to the music, contrasted with the relaxed, “poker-faced” demeanour of the United States’ Nathaniel Wimmer.

Shamel utilized a variety of hits, including a spectacular ducking counterattack, to lead 8-6 at the first break. As Wimmer pressed forward in the second period, Shamel expertly picked him off with counteractions, speeding to a 15-10 victory to secure the World Championship.

The silver medal was awarded to American Nathaniel Wimmer, the reigning Cadet World Champion and Junior World No. 7. Wimmer, a World Cup winner in Hong Kong in 2024, reached the final by overcoming a difficult semi-final against Kruz Schembri. Despite trailing 7-1 in the second period, Wimmer staged a massive comeback in the final 90 seconds of the match, turning that deficit into a 15-10 victory.

The bronze medals were shared by Kruz Schembri of the US Virgin Islands and Artemios Tzovanis of Greece. Schembri, the world number one and a Paris 2024 Olympian in foil, adds this podium finish to his 2025 Junior Pan American title.

Tzovanis, the world number 10, earned his place on the podium by defeating a formidable bracket that included a 15-14 quarterfinal upset of Paris 2024 Olympian Zhang of Canada. The success of Shamel and Tzovanis highlights the continued global expansion of elite epee fencing, with four different nations represented on the podium.

Sofija Prosina also made history, becoming Latvia’s first-ever World Champion in fencing with a commanding 15–7 victory over Switzerland’s Magda Louna Maiga in the Junior women’s épée final at a vibrant Carioca Arena 1 in Rio de Janeiro.

In a field of 169 fencers, Prosina’s path to gold was anything but easy. In the quarterfinals, she defeated 2025 Cadet World Champion (Wuxi, China) Lotti Horvath of Hungary by a decisive 15–6 margin. She then produced a remarkable comeback in the semifinals against Canada’s Ruien Xiao.

Xiao, ranked 15th in the senior standings, appeared in control late in the bout, holding an 8–5 lead with just one minute remaining. Prosina responded under pressure, landing three precise toe touches to level the score. The match moved into sudden-death priority, where Prosina once again found the toe to secure a dramatic 9–8 victory.

In the other semifinal, Maiga overwhelmed Canada’s Nicole Xuan 15–11 with an unrelenting, high-pressure attack. Employing a rare level of aggression for épée, Maiga dictated the tempo throughout, leaving Xuan unable to slow her momentum.

Xuan and Xiao each earned bronze medals.

Canada nearly placed a third fencer on the podium, but defending World Champion Julia Yin (Wuxi, China 2025) was stopped in the quarterfinals by Maiga, 15–9.

The round of 32 featured two notable upsets. Ukraine’s Anna Maksymenko, ranked ninth in the senior standings, was edged 12–11 by Hong Kong’s Wu Haidi, the 2025 (Wuxi, China) Cadet bronze medalist. Meanwhile, Hungary’s Blanka Virag Nagy, the 2025 (Wuxi, China) Junior silver medalist, was defeated by Estonia’s Eliisa Kikerpill 15-12.