Bulgarian sabre teams finish 14th at World Fencing Championships

The Bulgarian junior men’s and junior women’s sabre teams both finished in 14th place at the World Fencing Championships in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

In the junior men’s event, which featured 38 teams, Bulgaria was represented by Simeon Dalekov, Nikolay-Tomas Georgiev, Nikola Meitsov, and Stanimir Pelov. In the second round of eliminations, they defeated Canada 45–37. In the match for a place among the top eight, they were beaten by Italy 45–33, CE Report quotes BTA.

In the placement matches for 9th to 16th place, the Bulgarian fencers lost to Poland despite leading midway through the match, ultimately conceding a comeback and losing 44–45. For positions 13–16, they defeated Japan 45–33 but then lost to South Korea 36–45, finishing in 14th place.

The junior women’s sabre team — Kalina Atanasova, Mariela Georgieva, Ralitsa Gadzheva, and Viktoria Vitliemova — also finished in 14th place. A total of 33 teams competed.

The Bulgarian women started in the second round against South Korea, winning convincingly 45–28. In the match for a top-eight spot, they were narrowly defeated by France 45–43.

In the placement matches for 9th to 16th place, they lost to Romania 37–45, then defeated Germany 45–39, and in their final match lost to Poland in a last-point thriller, 44–45.

The Bulgarian Fencing Federation reported that the World Championships will continue tomorrow with the junior men’s and women’s foil events, where Bulgaria will be represented by Danail Polyshev.