🇰🇿 HISTORIC BREAKTHROUGH: KAZAKHSTAN CAPTURES FIRST EVER MEN'S TEAM EPEE WORLD TITLE
HONG KONG — 29 JULY 2026
World number five Kazakhstan made monumental sporting history on the eighth day of the 2026 World Championships, capturing their first ever World title in men’s team epee. Competing at AsiaWorld-Expo in Hong Kong, the disciplined Kazakh squad produced a tactical masterclass to withstand every challenge from Ukraine, securing a 45–40 victory in a thrilling gold medal showdown.
The landmark gold medal caps an extraordinary, historic tournament run for Kazakhstan, who managed the pacing and distance brilliantly across every round of direct elimination.
While Ukraine took home a hard-earned silver medal, Egypt snatched bronze in a dramatic, late-bout comeback against Israel.
Path to the Podium
Team Kazakhstan, fielding a cohesive roster of Ruslan Kurbanov, Kirill Prokhodov, Yerlik Sertay and Vadim Sharlaimov, opened their campaign with a bye before defeating Finland 45–39. They survived a nerve-shredding 28–27 battle against Uzbekistan in the round of 16 before turning aside Denmark 45–36 in the quarter-finals.
In the semi-finals against World number eight Egypt, Kazakhstan controlled the tempo from the opening fight. The Kazakhs edged a low-scoring start to lead 9–6 after three legs before pulling away in the middle third to command a 26–16 advantage after six relays. Egypt proved unable to breach the Kazakh defense in the final third as Kazakhstan cruised to a 41–32 victory.
The gold medal match against Ukraine followed a remarkably similar tactical script. Kazakhstan edged the first three legs to lead 12–10 and pushed their cushion to 27–24 after six bouts. Mykhailo Krasniuk closed the deficit for Ukraine in the seventh leg, but Sertay re-established Kazakhstan's dominance by out-scoring Nikita Koshman 7–4 in the penultimate fight. Prokhodov then completed history in the anchor leg, closing out the 45–40 victory to seal Kazakhstan's maiden World crown.
Team Ukraine, represented by Ievgen Makiienko, Nikita Koshman, Mykhailo Krasniuk and Roman Svichkar, put together an incredible tournament run to capture silver. Seeded seventh, the Ukrainians defeated Sweden 45–35, edged Poland 41–40 and pulled off a phenomenal 39–37 quarter-final upset over World number two Switzerland.
In a tense semi-final against Israel, Ukraine led 11–9 after three legs and protected a narrow 28–27 lead after six. Yonatan Cohen produced a 3–0 seventh leg against Krasniuk to put Israel ahead 30–28 but Koshman drew Ukraine level at 33–33 in the eighth bout. Svichkar faced Alon Sarid in a high-stakes anchor leg, holding his nerve to earn a thrilling 45–44 victory and send Ukraine to the final.
Team Egypt, utilising Mohamed Elsayed, Mahmoud Elsayed, Mahmoud Mohsen and Youssef Shamel, recovered brilliantly from their semi-final setback to capture the bronze medal. Seeded eighth, Egypt opened with a 44–33 win over Portugal, edged Spain 36–35 and dispatched Russia 45–35 in the quarter-finals after Russia had previously eliminated top seeds France.
Following their semi-final defeat to Kazakhstan, the Egyptians engaged in an absolute thriller against Israel for bronze. A patient opening gave Israel a 13–12 lead after three legs but Egypt fought back to take a 29–28 edge after six. Cohen leveled for Israel at 31–31 in the seventh bout before Sarid pushed Israel ahead 37–35 going into the final fight. Mohamed Elsayed delivered the ultimate twist, executing a game-changing 4–1 run against Dov Ber Vilensky to seal a 39–38 victory and put Egypt on the podium.
Team Israel, featuring Yonatan Cohen, Yehonathan Lambrey Messika, Dov Ber Vilensky and Alon Sarid, finished fourth after an extraordinary underdog run. Seeded 14th, Israel shocked Germany 39–35, knocked out World number three Italy 42–41 and routed World number 11 Korea 43–32 before falling by single-touch margins in both medal rounds.
Full results are here.
