The No. 5 seeded U.S. women’s saber fencing team fit the bill with a fifth place finish Saturday, Aug. 3 at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics.
Portland’s own Magda Skarbonkiewicz, 18, played an important role, starting with the first bout of the day against No. 4 seed South Korea. The youngster won the bout 5-4 to give the U.S. an early lead.
However, the lead evaporated quickly and the former Jesuit High School student in Skarbonkiewicz faced a 15-8 deficit when she got back to the floor. She closed the gap to 20-15 to keep her team in it.
The U.S. women couldn’t ever put together enough points though as Skarbonkiewicz faced a 35-27 deficit in the eighth overall bout and her last one. She left the score 40-33 to outscore her opponent in all three bouts.
South Korea went on to take the win 45-35 and eliminate the Americans from medal contention.
In the placement match following against Algeria, Skarbonkiewicz got the U.S. going after stepping up for the third bout trailing 10-9. The 18-year-old won her bout 6-0 to put the Americans in front 15-10 and they never looked back.
Skarbonkiewicz went up two more times, losing her second bout 6-5 but winning the third 5-1 en route to a 45-28 win for the U.S.
In the fifth place match against Hungary, Skarbonkiewicz was once again the spark. She got off to a tough start, losing the opening bout 5-2, and still trailed 20-19 when she was back up for the fifth bout.
There, Skarbonkiewicz put her squad on the winning path with a 6-1 individual advantage and a 25-21 team lead.
Her teammates held that lead at 40-37 and Skarbonkiewicz finished the job with a 5-2 win in the ninth bout for a 45-39 team win.
At only 18, Skarbonkiewicz is sure to be a fixture for many years to come in the fencing world, and will have plenty of experience before the Olympics come home to Los Angeles in 2028.
Most Popular
Comments / 0