Just a quick one today:  have some lovely tempo breaks from Oh Sanguk, who seems to be channeling a bit of Won Wooyoung here: [gfycat data_id=”PointedSnarlingGermanshorthairedpointer”] And just for fun, have a bonus round: [gfycat data_id=”TenderRealChinesecrocodilelizard”] No, that isn’t Gu Bongil on meth, it’s his new protege Kim Junho, enjoying himself thoroughly. These guys were … More Break step: Oh SU (KOR) v Occhiuzzi (ITA)

This week so far has been about Kamil Ibragimov being a terrifying implacable ice man, but he’s not invincible.  As is common for talented but relatively inexperienced fencers, his usual failure mode is to build a convincing lead before losing control of the match in the second half. It has, however, been rare in the … More Whirling blade of death: Kim (KOR) v Ibragimov (RUS)

We’ve previously noted that Gu Bongil has a cool party trick in his rather lovely 4m counterparry. We’re apparently not the only ones to have noticed. When he tried to deploy it against Kamil Ibragimov in their tense L16 bout in Padova last weekend, this is what happened: [gfycat data_id=”ScrawnyGraveDinosaur”] What an astonishing hit. That’s … More Turning the tables: Ibragimov (RUS) v Gu (KOR)

So, we should probably talk about Kamil Ibragimov. The shining  star of new-gen Russian sabre, the 21 year old has been honed by legendary coach Christian Bauer into a model of perfection.  He’s pretty much the diametric opposite of the sort of sabre I’m usually into, but he’s pushed it so far it’s reached a … More Young guns: Padova World Cup recap, part 4: Ibragimov (RUS) v Yagodka (UKR)