Albertson Van Zo Post

To Albertson Van Zo Post belongs the distinction of being the first American ever to win an Olympic championship in fencing, an accomplishment not duplicated for over 90 years. This is a credit long denied him because there has been a popular misconception for some years that he was a member of the Cuban team at the 1904 Olympics. In fact, he belonged to an old New York family. His father, Col. Henry V. Post, fought for the Union Army in the Civil War and was wounded seriously at Antietam. Post represented the New York Fencers Club and won the AFLA national championship in foil individual in 1895, épée individual in 1896 and 1912, and sabre individual in 1902 and 1903. He is one of the very few fencers to win the national championship in all three weapons. At the 1904 Olympics, aided by a sparse turnout, Post took a medal in each of the four events he entered, including a gold in single-sticks, an event that was never again contested at the Olympics. Post fenced all three weapons in the 1912 Olympics, and with a larger and stronger field, Post’s second-round elimination in all three weapons is probably a better indicator of his true ability. Albertson Van Zo Post had two careers. Although he trained as a civil engineer and entered that profession, he switched to writing novels, producing “Retz” and “Diana Ardway.”