SOUTH BEND, Ind. – The University of Notre Dame has produced some of the top fencers in the world over the last decade and the 2024 Olympics in Paris will be no different. Six fencing athletes who either will compete for the Irish in the upcoming season or have competed for Notre Dame will feature at the Summer Games.
The six fencing athletes will be representing three different countries as Lee Kiefer (women’s foil), Gerek Meinhardt (men’s foil), Nick Itkin (men’s foil) and Magda Skarbonkiewicz (women’s sabre) will compete for the United States. Eszter Muhari (women’s epee) will fence for Hungary while Amita Berthier (women’s foil) will suit up for Singapore.
Also on Team USA’s roster is Notre Dame assistant coach Cedric Louiseau, who will serve as an assistant coach for the women’s epee team in Paris. Four other Notre Dame fencers will be at the Olympics as sparring partners. Lola Possick (USA – women’s sabre), Siobahan Sullivan (USA – women’s sabre), Stefani Deschner (USA – women’s foil) and Chase Emmer (USA – men’s foil) will help Team USA fencing in training.
Short bios and the Notre Dame fencers Olympic event schedules are below.
Lee Kiefer
Kiefer is the most decorated women’s foil fencer in U.S. history. She is entering this summer’s Paris Olympics ranked first in the world. At Notre Dame, Kiefer won four national championships, becoming the first Notre Dame student-athlete to win four national titles in the same event (women’s foil). She has competed in the past three Olympics, winning the individual Gold Medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Kiefer was the first U.S. women’s foil fencer to earn a world No. 1 ranking. She is also the first athlete to win eight consecutive individual titles at the Pan American Championships.
Gerek Meinhardt
At the age of 17, in 2008, he was the youngest U.S. olympic fencer in history. At Notre Dame, Meinhardt won two individual national championships while also being a four-time All-American. While fencing for the Irish, he became the first active collegiate fencer to be ranked the No. 1 fencer in the world. Meinhardt was the first U.S. male to win three Senior World medals and was a member of the first U.S. Men’s Foil Team to win a Senior World Championship. He has competed in the past four Olympics, helping the United States win bronze in 2016 and 2020 in team men’s foil. Meinhardt is entering this summer’s Paris Olympics ranked 12th in the world.
Nick Itkin
At Notre Dame, Itkin won two individual national championships as a foil fencer. He competed at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo and helped the United States win a team men’s foil bronze medal. He is a five-time Division I Individual National Champion (2017, 2018, 2021, 2022, 2023). Itkin was the first U.S. fencer to win individual Junior World, Division I, and NCAA Championship titles in the same season. He was also an individual silver medalist at the 2023 World Championships in Italy. Itkin enters this summer’s Paris Olympics ranked second in the world.
Magda Skarbonkiewicz
Skarbonkiewicz has yet to fence for the Fighting Irish, but is set to fence in South Bend following this summer’s Paris Olympics. Despite being just 18, she has already accomplished numerous feats in the fencing world. She is a two-time Junior World Champion (2022, 2023). Skarbonkiewicz is also a double 2023 Pan American Games champion, both team and individual honors. She is also a back-to-back Division 1 gold medalist at the July Challenge (2022, 2023). Skarbonkiewicz is entering this summer’s Paris Olympics ranked 23rd in the world.
Eszter Muhari
Muhari did not fence for the Fighting Irish in her sophomore year because she was training for this summer’s Paris Olympics. However, in her freshman season, she won the 2023 individual national championship in epee with a 21-3 record. She was also an All-American in her freshman season. On the international stage, Muhari won a gold medal and a bronze medal at the Grand Prix and a bronze medal at the World Cup. She is entering this summer’s Paris Olympics ranked ninth in the world.
Amita Berthier
At Notre Dame, Berthier was an All-American, finished second in the 2022 NCAA National Championships, and finished third in the 2019, 2021, 2023 NCAA Championships. She competed in the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. She also finished third in the Zone Championships. Berthier enters this summer’s Paris Olympics ranked 35th in the world.