Nigeria’s women’s epee team achieved a significant milestone at the 23rd African Fencing Championships, securing their first-ever win in the competition.
The team, comprising Somtochukwu Eribenne, Sara Idongesit, and Adebodunirin Thomas, rallied to defeat the Benin Republic 45-40 in the classification match for fifth place. This victory marked a morale-boosting moment for the team, who had earlier suffered a quarter-final loss to Algeria.
“We are excited to win our first game and also finish in the top five in the event,” said Thomas, expressing the team’s elation. “We worked together as a team, and our coach helped us to put up a good fight against our opponents.
This will surely help our confidence going into the next competition.” The win was a testament to the team’s resilience and teamwork, and it gave the home crowd something to cheer about.
The 23rd African Fencing Championships, hosted at Charterhouse in Lagos, featured over 120 fencers from 18 countries. Egypt emerged as the overall champion, amassing the highest number of gold medals. In the men’s team foil, Egypt continued its dominance, defeating Angola in a one-sided final.
The Egyptian team, featuring 2025 men’s foil champion Abdelrahman Tolba, Karim Medhat, Mohamed Hamza, and Sief Elghayesh, cruised past Nigeria 45-9 in the semi-finals before overpowering Angola 45-23 in the final.
In the women’s team epee final, Egypt was awarded the gold medal after the match against Algeria was halted at 6-6, with Algeria refusing to continue.
Egypt also triumphed in the women’s team sabre, where Alanoud Hegazy, Nada Hafez, Nagwa Nofal, and Renad Eldoksh led the team to a 45-40 victory over Algeria, adding another gold medal to their tally.
Medal Table
Egypt topped the overall medal table with an impressive haul of 11 gold, five silver, and five bronze medals. Kenya followed in second place with one gold, while Tunisia secured third with two silver and two bronze medals.
Algeria finished fourth with one silver and six bronze medals. Ivory Coast and South Africa each claimed one silver and one bronze, while Angola earned one silver. Morocco, Cape Verde, and Senegal each took home one bronze medal.
The tournament served as a platform for fencers from across Africa to showcase their skills and compete at a high level. With Nigeria’s women’s epee team securing their first-ever win, the competition marked a significant moment in the country’s fencing history.