American fencers make Olympic history in individual foil final

Is the United States suddenly becoming a powerhouse in fencing?

On Sunday, Americans Lee Kiefer and Lauren Scruggs made the individual foil final. James Ellingworth of the Associated Press noted there hadn't been an all-U.S. final in an Olympic fencing event since 2008 when Mariel Zagunis defeated Sada Jacobson.

Kiefer won her second consecutive gold medal in the foil at the Grand Palais, defeating Scruggs 15-6. She and Zagunis are the only American fencers to win two golds in the same event, via Ellingworth.

Scruggs, meanwhile, became the first Black fencer to win an Olympic medal in an individual women's event for the U.S.

USA Today's Josh Peter noted that 30-year-old Kiefer may keep fencing or retire from the sport to finish medical school at the University of Kentucky School of Medicine. If she walks away, could 21-year-old Scruggs be the four-time Olympian's successor?

Scruggs — a Havard student — was making her Olympic debut and wasn't expected to compete for the gold medal this year. However, the up-and-comer upset world No. 1 Italian Arianna Errigo in the Round of 8.

"I'm definitely more happy than disappointed," Scruggs told Ellingworth after the final. "I think that it was shocking for me to be here in the first place, so I don't even think I've had time to process losing, if I'm being honest. Just shocking and just super grateful."

Regardless, Scruggs and Kiefer deserve credit for thriving in a sport with a minuscule presence in the U.S. According to The Athletic's Dana O'Neil, only 81 schools across the NCAA's three divisions offer both men's and women's fencing.