COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — From the young to the young at heart, Team USA’s fencers climbed the medal stand again and again during the 2022 Pan American Youth & Veteran Championships, held Aug. 22–26 in Lima, Peru.
Team USA’s 86 competitors earned a combined 72 medals — including 23 golds — across 36 events. That result was more than enough for the Americans to top the medal table at the event for fencers ages 8 to 13 or 40 and older as of Dec. 31, 2022.
The gold medalists included 11-year-old Grace Feng (White Plains, N.Y./Tim Morehouse Fencing Club), who won gold in both Youth B Women’s Foil (11 and under) and Pre-Cadet Women’s Foil (13 and under), and 67-year-old Gladys Berardi (Long Valley, N.J.), who topped the medal stand in both Veteran 1 Women’s Saber (50 and up) and Veteran 2 Women’s Saber (60 and up).
The oldest competitor on Team USA’s squad was 74; the youngest was 8. Fencing together in the same venue, the youth and veteran fencers competed across five days inside the 2,400-seat Coliseo Miguel Grau.
The Americans swept the medal stand — earning gold, silver and both bronze medals — in three events: Youth B Women’s Saber, Pre-Cadet Men’s Foil and Veteran 2 Women’s Saber. Team USA had at least one medalist in 34 of the 36 events.