The ROC has won gold in women's team sabre once again after beating France 45-41 Saturday morning.
Everything was going France's way early on after Olga Nikitina beat Manon Brunet in Round 1. The French won each of the next three rounds and took two of them rather convincingly. Nikitina then stayed hot for ROC in the fifth round, though, defeating Charlotte Lembach by a score of 11-3 to completely shift the match's momentum.
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It was all ROC in the following two rounds. Sofya Velikaya and Sofia Pozdniakova won both of their respective bouts, and while Brunet did an admirable job trying to close the gap, Nikitina sealed the deal for ROC in the final round to defend their team sabre gold from Rio.
ROC has now earned seven fencing medals at the Tokyo Olympics alone, including a gold in women's team foil. And they may not be done. The ROC men will have a chance to win gold in team foil Sunday morning.
South Korea Takes Bronze
South Korea came out fast and furious in its bronze medal match as Ji-Yeon Kim swiftly got a pair of touches on the board for her squad. Italy's Irene Vecchi responded quickly, though, earning her country a victory in the first round.
Vecchi's teammates mostly followed her lead for the next several rounds. The Italians recorded five hits in each of the following four rounds, resulting in two wins and two ties, until Jisu Yoon bested Rossella Gregorio 11-5 in Round 6.
However, the tides turned in Round 7 when South Korea reclaimed the lead after a huge 9-3 win by Ji-Yeon Seo over Michela Battiston. Yoon then logged an additional five hits in the eighth round to get South Korea within five of victory in the final round. Ultimately, it was Ji-Yeon Kim who ended it and won bronze for the Koreans in Round 9.