🇫🇷 HOME HEROES FRANCE TRIUMPH IN EUROPEAN WOMEN'S TEAM EPEE SHOWDOWN

ANTONY, FRANCE — 21 JUNE 2026

The French women’s epee squad captured a spectacular gold medal on the sixth day of the 2026 European Fencing Championships, sending the home crowd into raptures. Competing at the Éric Tabarly Sports Complex in Antony, World number three France demonstrated superb tactical poise to overcome a fierce mid-match fightback from Hungary, securing a fantastic 42–36 victory in a gripping gold medal bout.

The magnificent continental victory marks France's first podium finish of the international season, timed perfectly in front of their home fans.

While Hungary added an elite European silver to their seasonal collection, World number nine Ukraine outlasted top seeds Italy in an extraordinary extra-time cliffhanger to seal the bronze.

Path to the Podium

Team France, who lined up with Marie-Florence Candassamy, Auriane Mallo-Breton, Alexandra Louis Marie and Diane Von Kerssenbrock, received a first-round bye before safely navigating past Turkey 45–40. They booked their semi-final slot by defeating Switzerland 45–37, then put on a masterclass in aggressive epee fencing to dismantle Ukraine 45–33.

The gold medal match against Hungary was an absolute tactical rollercoaster. The French trio of Von Kerssenbrock, Mallo-Breton and Candassamy started with immense patience, constructing a steady 9–4 cushion after the opening three legs. However, individual European bronze medallist Eszter Muhari sparked an astonishing Hungarian revival, ripping through a heroic 10–1 leg against the hosts to put Hungary ahead 17–15 after five relays. Mallo-Breton immediately steadied the French ship, fighting back to level the score at 19–19 in the sixth leg. Von Kerssenbrock then took complete control in the penultimate tier, re-establishing a comfortable 26–22 lead. Despite another explosive, high-scoring anchor leg from Muhari, Candassamy slammed the door shut to lock down the European crown.

Team Hungary, consisting of Emma Borsody, Lili Buki, Eszter Muhari and Blanka Nagy, earned a phenomenal silver medal to follow up on their impressive World Cup campaigns in Vancouver and Saint-Maur. Seeded eighth, the Hungarian line-up advanced past Spain 45–37 before subduing the Individual Neutral Athletes (AIN) 39–33 in a cagey quarter-final. They secured their final berth by completely smothering World number four Italy 38–30 in a defensive semi-final clinic but they could not quite sustain that momentum through the final relays against France.

Team Ukraine, utilizing a highly experienced line-up of Inna Brovko, Olena Kryvytska, Anna Maksymenko and Yana Shemyakina, celebrated their first podium appearance of the season by capturing a fully deserved bronze medal. Ukraine opened with a comfortable 45–27 win over Sweden before grinding out a tense 35–33 quarter-final upset over World number six Estonia.

Following their semi-final loss to France, the Ukrainians engaged in an absolute classic, low-scoring war of attrition against Italy for the bronze. Ukraine edged out to a 13–8 advantage after three legs and protected that gap to lead 21–18 after six. Italy's Gaia Caforio turned the match upside down in the seventh leg, drawing the top seeds level at 23–23, and the two teams entered the final leg deadlocked at 25–25. Alberta Santuccio and Maksymenko fought to a standstill, sending the bout into a nerve-shredding sudden-death extra minute tied at 28–28. Although Santuccio held the mechanical priority advantage, she launched an attack from well out of distance, allowing Maksymenko to execute a brilliant, lightning-fast counter-attack to seal the podium place.

Team Italy, represented by Gaia Caforio, Rossella Fiamingo, Giulia Rizzi and Alberta Santuccio, suffered immense disappointment to finish in fourth place. The World number four squad had looked completely untouchable in the morning session, routing Great Britain 43–14 and dismantling Germany 36–14 but they ultimately lacked the late-bout clinical edge required to unlock Hungary and Ukraine in the medal rounds.

Full results are here.