Foil, Individual, Men

The favorite was likely Italy’s Oreste Puliti, the 1927 world champion, although he was fortunate to be able to compete at all. At the 1924 Olympics he was incensed by a decision in the sabre competition, and withdrew from the event, and his entire Italian fencing team then withdrew. By a decision of the IOC, Puliti was then banned from future Olympic participation, but two years later, after a request by the Italian fencing federation, this decision was reconsidered and Puliti was allowed to compete in 1928.

Both he and France’s Lucien Gaudin were undefeated in qualifying for the final pool. There Puliti lost three matches to drop to fourth place, while Gaudin had nine wins and two losses, tying him with Erwin Casmir (GER) and Giulio Gaudini (ITA). Casmir had beaten Gaudin in their pool match but in the barrage for medals, Gaudin reversed that outcome. He then faced Gaudini. With the score tied 2-2, Gaudini grazed Gaudin’s jacket but the referee ruled “no touch”. The Italians immediately protested but Gaudin walked over to the jury and magnanimously told them, “I was touched”. Gaudini went ahead 4-2, but Gaudin came back to win the final three points, winning the match 5-4, and secure the gold medal. Gaudini also lost to Casmir, which gave the German the silver medal.

Gaudin was competing in his third Olympics and competed in six events. He won a medal in all six, with four golds. Six days after this victory, he won the individual épée in Amsterdam, only the second time that a fencer would win both the individual foil and épée at the same Olympics (after Ramón Fonst (CUB) in 1904). This was Gaudini’s second Olympics, after competing in team foil in 1924, and he would compete again in 1932 and 1936, and finish his Olympic career with nine medals – three gold, four silver, and two bronzes. Erwin Casmir was the greatest German fencer of the 1920s. He would also compete in 1932 and 1936 but this would be his only individual Olympic medal.