Dublin University Fencing Club (DUFC) won a bronze medal at the Irish Open this weekend, putting the cherry on top of a number of notable performances across various disciplines. Two past members of the club won gold in team events.
Eva Melly was the recipient of DUFC’s bronze medal, finishing third in the women’s epee, while Phillip Cripwell came sixth in the men’s foil. In the women’s sabre, Imogen McGuckin came fifth and captain Bethany Rush claimed sixth place.
DUFC also saw success in the Dublin men’s epee satellite, which involved 77 fencers from Ireland and abroad. Sam Mitchell and Axilleas Floudas got through to the competition after poules but were subsequently eliminated.
Two past DUFC members were on gold medal-winning teams, Crystal Percival competing in the women’s foil and Colm Kelleher competing in the men’s sabre. Percival also came sixth in the women’s foil.
In an email statement to The University Times, DUFC captain Bethany Rush said: “The Irish Open weekend is always highly anticipated and trained for and with it being held early this year the pressure was high to be ready. However, in this, the largest competition of the year, DUFC proved that not only are we of a high national standard but also capable of competing with the international standards, with medals in two team events from our active alumni and with Eva Melly taking bronze in Women’s Epee.”
The Irish Open took place in the National Indoor Athletic Training Centre in Blanchardstown. The event included 12 events in foil, sabre, epee and team events. DUFC have seen plenty of success this year, winning four medals at the South of Ireland Open in September. DUFC received one sports scholarship this year, awarded to Anna Lee.
