13 May 2022
Abingdon Fencing Team had a strong showing at the British Youth Championships at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield. Benjamin MacLennan was declared the U18 Epee Champion. He won five out of six fights in his poule to be seeded 12th going into the knockout stage. He then fought through six knockout rounds to win. Each of the 53 competitors had already won their own regional championships. This was a tremendous achievement by Ben – a replay of the final is viewable on the British Fencing website.
The competition was a great success for other members of the squad. Despite being one of the younger members of his category Matthew Stone, representing the Southern Region in the U16 group, finished 68th (out of 82) in the foil and 44th out of 72 in the epee.
Fin Bennet showed great form to reach 25th in the U16 epee, finally getting knocked out in the round of 32 by a score of 15-13.
Meanwhile in the U12, Zen Senathirajah fought his way up to 17th rank in his age group for the epee.
These results are both a huge achievement and show great promise for the club. Well done all!
