Iran wins saber silver at fencing World Cup
Iran’s saber team settled for the men’s sliver at the FIE Coupe du Monde following a final defeat against fencing powerhouse South Korea in Oran, Algeria.
The Iranian three-man team, comprising world No. 9 Ali Pakdaman, Mohammad Fotouhi, and Farzad Baher, came from behind to beat the United States 45-35 for a place in the final showpiece.
This was Iran’s second victory over the Americans in less than four months after a last-eight win at the Paris Olympics.
Iran had began its campaign with a 45-44 win against Ukraine and then came out on top against European heavyweight Hungary – victorious over Iran in the Olympic semifinals – 45-36 in the quarterfinals.
The final opponent, however, proved too powerful for Mohammad Rahbari’s men, as the Olympic champion took an early lead and never looked back to walk away with a 45-35 triumph.
The silver medal will still go down as a decent coaching debut for Rahbari, who was only appointed to the job days before the team left for Algeria, while it saw the Iranian team move up by two spots to sit fourth with 256 points in the latest FIE Senior Men’s Rankings – following South Korea, USA, and Hungary.
The team event came after the Iranians had a disappointing run in the men’s individual contests, with Pakdaman the only fencer to represent the country in the round of 32 before suffering a 15-10 defeat against Olaf Stasiak of Poland.