Lucas Malcotti wins historic individual epee world title for Switzerland at Hong Kong championships

Road to gold

Lucas Malcotti reached the top of the podium after a gruelling day at the World Fencing Championships in Hong Kong. He opened his campaign by outclassing Hungarian Gergely Siklosi 15:11 in the round of 16. The quarter-final against Russian Dimitri Schwelidse went to extra time, with Malcotti prevailing 12:11. The semi-final proved even tighter, a 13:12 win over surprise package Khalifah Alomairi of Saudi Arabia, again in overtime. In the final he faced 24-year-old Italian Davide Di Veroli, the 2023 vice world champion.

The gold-medal bout was a tense affair. Malcotti trailed 1:3 after the first period and 4:6 after the second. Only with 1 minute 23 seconds left on the clock did he overtake his opponent, then held on to close the contest 12:11. "This day was on my side," the 31-year-old said afterwards, reflecting on the narrow margins that carried him through three consecutive 12:11 or 13:12 victories.

Historic achievement

Before Hong Kong no Swiss man had ever won an individual world fencing title. The only previous Swiss individual gold belonged to Anja Straub, who triumphed in the women's epee at Colorado in 1989. Malcotti's victory therefore etches his name into the record books as the first male Swiss world champion in singles. He had already claimed team gold in 2018, but he rated this personal crown higher. In an interview with RTS he described the emotion as "incroyable" and placed the individual title "a notch above" the team success, adding that he had written "a very great page in Swiss fencing history."

Reaction and outlook

Malcotti told the International Fencing Federation's microphone that he had approached the competition without a set goal, taking it "touch by touch" for pleasure. He believes this mindset freed him from pressure, especially since no one had installed him as favourite. The title comes after a difficult period: physical problems hampered him at the European Championships one month earlier and led to moments of doubt where he thought about giving everything up. His style, he told RTS, is built on "power." The gold medal sharpens his motivation for the 2028 Olympic Games.

Canoe slalom success

While Malcotti was making history in Hong Kong, the Marx siblings delivered medals for Switzerland at the Canoe Slalom World Championships in Oklahoma City. Alena Marx, 25, won gold in the olympic kayak cross discipline, her second world title after gold in the kayak cross time-trial a year ago. Her older brother Dimitri Marx took silver in the same event, behind Czech Vit Prindis. It was Dimitri's first individual world championship medal. The Oklahoma City course is the venue for the slalom competitions at the 2028 Los Angeles Games, and the championships were the first event counting towards the Olympic qualification ranking.