Congratulations to the Women’s Foil Team who set a Canadian record with a fourth place finish at the Cancun Fencing World Cup this weekend.

The team, made up of Eleanor Harvey (Hamilton, ON), Alanna Goldie (Calgary, AB), Kelleigh Ryan (Ottawa, ON) and Shannon Comerford (Saskatoon, SK), came into the World Cup season ranked 7^th in the World, after a number of top 8 finishes last season, including a 6^th place finish at the 2017 World Championships. The team’s victory this weekend in the quarter-finals against France proved to be another breakthrough for the team, moving them into the medal rounds in the first tournament of the season.

The team started their day with a victory against Great Britain in the round of 16’s. Canada defeated Great Britain 45-36.   They then faced Team France, ranked fourth in the world rankings. Canada had a remarkable come-from-behind victory, defeating France 45 to 37 to move onto the semi-finals and the medal round.

Canada lost in the semi-finals to number one ranked Italy which moved them into the bronze medal match against the USA. The bronze medal final was a nail biter to the end, with Canada eventually losing 33-26 to take fourth place overall.

“The podium is achievable!” remarked Head Coach Paul ApSimon, who along with Mike Pederson and Yoann Lebrun made up the coaching staff for the team in Mexico.

The Canadians took part in the individual competition earlier in the weekend, with Eleanor Harvey making it to the quarter-finals before losing to Arianna Errigo from Italy 15-9. Errigo is currently ranked third in the world rankings and finished with a bronze medal in Cancun. Harvey defeated Russian Svetlana Tripapina 15-11 in the 16’s to advance to the quarter-finals where she finished in 8^th place overall. Alanna Goldie made top 64, losing to USA’s Jacqueline Dubrovich 15-10 to finish 41^st.

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