Who is fencing well right now, and where the épée world stands mid-cycle toward LA 2028. The 2026 World Championships in Hong Kong just wrapped in July, so this is fresh. I keep this page current when a World Cup or a major finishes.
(y-) 2026 World Championships (Hong Kong)
Held 22 to 30 July 2026 at AsiaWorld-Expo in Hong Kong. Italy ran away with the overall medal table (four golds, four silvers across the twelve events). The men’s individual épée was the story of the tournament for me: a first-time world champion and a final decided by a single touch.
Men’s Individual Épée (23 and 26 July, 229 fencers from 81 nations)
| Medal | Fencer | Country |
|---|---|---|
| Gold | Lucas Malcotti | Switzerland |
| Silver | Davide Di Veroli | Italy |
| Bronze | Masaru Yamada | Japan |
| Bronze | Khalifah Al-Omairi | Saudi Arabia |
Malcotti beat Al-Omairi 13-12 in the final, one touch, exactly the kind of margin épée specializes in. On the way there he edged Di Veroli 12-11 in the semi. Al-Omairi’s run to a Worlds final is a genuine sign of how far the sport has spread past the traditional French-Italian-Hungarian core.
The Other Épée Titles
| Event | Gold | Silver |
|---|---|---|
| Women’s individual | Song Se-ra (KOR) | Giulia Rizzi (ITA) |
| Men’s team | Kazakhstan | Ukraine |
| Women’s team | Italy | Estonia |
Kazakhstan winning men’s team gold over Ukraine is the headline for the geography of the sport. The old powers did not sweep this. Song Se-ra taking the women’s individual title over Rizzi (who had two World Cup wins this season) capped a breakout year for Korea.
(y-) 2025-26 World Cup Circuit
The World Cup season is the grind that sets the FIE rankings underneath the Worlds. Winners were spread across the map, which is exactly the épée pattern: no single fencer owns a season.
Men’s Individual Épée
| Date | Location | Winner |
|---|---|---|
| 5 Dec 2025 | Vancouver | Mohamed El-Sayed (EGY) |
| 9 Jan 2026 | Fujairah | Conrad Seibaek Kongstad (DEN) |
| 5 Feb 2026 | Heidenheim | Ruslan Kurbanov (KAZ) |
| 26 Mar 2026 | Astana | Roman Svichkar (UKR) |
| 22 May 2026 | Berne | Mohamed El-Sayed (EGY) |
Women’s Individual Épée
| Date | Location | Winner |
|---|---|---|
| 5 Dec 2025 | Vancouver | Giulia Rizzi (ITA) |
| 8 Jan 2026 | Fujairah | Marie-Florence Candassamy (FRA) |
| 6 Feb 2026 | Wuxi | Giulia Rizzi (ITA) |
| 27 Mar 2026 | Astana | Song Se-ra (KOR) |
| 22 May 2026 | St-Maur | Alberta Santuccio (ITA) |
El-Sayed taking two of the five men’s legs (Vancouver and Berne) made him the most consistent man on the circuit even though the Worlds title went elsewhere. Song Se-ra’s Astana win in March was the tell before her July world title.
(y-) Names to Know in 2026
| Fencer | Country | Why They Matter |
|---|---|---|
| Koki Kano | Japan | Paris 2024 Olympic champion and 2025 world champion. The benchmark of the cycle. |
| Lucas Malcotti | Switzerland | 2026 world champion. New name at the very top, single-touch finalist under pressure. |
| Davide Di Veroli | Italy | 2026 Worlds silver, spearhead of Italy’s dominant program. |
| Mohamed El-Sayed | Egypt | Most consistent man on the 2025-26 World Cup circuit, two legs. |
| Giulia Rizzi | Italy | Two World Cup wins and a Worlds silver. Veteran anchor of the women’s side. |
| Song Se-ra | South Korea | 2026 women’s world champion, breakout of the year. |
| Khalifah Al-Omairi | Saudi Arabia | Worlds finalist, the standard-bearer for épée’s expansion beyond Europe. |
For how these fencers actually fight, see the style notes in (y-) Tactics.
(y-) Reading the Cycle
- The map got wider. Egypt, Kazakhstan, Saudi Arabia, Korea, and Ukraine all won something meaningful this season. Épée is no longer a French-Italian-Hungarian conversation.
- Kano is still the measuring stick. The Olympic and defending 2025 world champion sets the bar even when he does not win every event.
- Italy is the deepest program. Topping the Worlds medal table with a young individual finalist (Di Veroli) plus team gold on the women’s side is the healthiest pipeline in the sport.
- One touch decides everything. A 13-12 world final is the whole argument for why I fence épée. The box does not care about reputation.
Sources
- Men’s épée at the 2026 World Fencing Championships (Wikipedia)
- Hong Kong World Championships 2026 (FIE)
- 2025-26 Fencing World Cup (Wikipedia)
- FIE: International Fencing Federation
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