China grab double gold to close World Cup
19/03/2023
China took home two of the three gold medals on offer to end the 2023 International Wheelchair and Amputee Sports Federation (IWAS) Wheelchair Fencing World Cup in Pisa, Italy, on Sunday (19 March).
You can watch the competition back here, alongside results. Pictures are available on Flickr.
In the men’s epee, Gang Sun, Jie Zhang, Liqiang Cheng and Saichun Zhong, headlined by Cheng who grabbed gold in the individual on Saturday (18 March), were the victors.
Ukraine’s Maksym Mahula, Artem Manko and Anton Datsko struggled against the Paralympic silver medallists but will still be happy with their silver.
Iraq’s Ameer Al Gburi, Zainulabdeen Al-Madhkhori, Hayder Al-Ogaili and Ammar Ali got past Germany to claim the final podium spot.
China also won the mixed team foil, a relatively new event which is in its second year at the World Cup.
Yuandong Chen, Xiao Rong, Yang Chen and Yanke Feng were the victors ahead of Ukraine, who picked up another silver.
Morvych headed out again alongside Olga Yesina, Andrii Demchuk and Oleg Naumenko.
Italy did not close the competition empty handed. Andreea Mogos, Alessia Biagini, Matteo Betti and Michele Masa left with the bronze.
World and European champions Georgia triumphed in the women’s team sabre against Poland.
Poland managed to eliminate the silver medallists from the Euros, Ukraine, on their way to the final, but Georgia proved a step too far for them in the end.
Poland had a strong start as Marta Fydrich and Kinga Drozdz carved out a seven point lead but Gvansta Zadishvili put in an impressive first shift against Jadwiga Pacek, scoring 12 points.
From them on Georgia looked unbeatable. Drozdz was Poland’s top performer, showing her quality once again after winning the individual competition on Saturday (18 March), but Zadishvili, Irma Khetsuriani and Nina Tibilashvili performed consistently well to claim victory.
Ukraine still managed to seal bronze, beating Thailand in the match for third place. Nataliia Mandryk, Nataliia Morkvych and Nadia Doloh were the triumphant trio.
The 2023 IWAS Wheelchair Fencing World Cup in Pisa took place between 16-19 March.
Pisa 2023 was the second of five World Cups set to take place this year. Nimes, France, will host next from 20-23 April, followed by Warsaw, Poland, in July and Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand, in December.
As well as the World Championships in Terni, Italy, in October, the Asian Championships also head to Hangzhou, China, as part of the Asian Para Games from 23-28 October.