🌍 LIMA THRILLER: ALINA MIKHAILOVA POWERS AIN TO STUNNING COMEBACK GOLD
Updated: Aug 6
LIMA, PERU — 24 MAY 2026
The Individual Neutral Athletes (AIN) squad orchestrated an unforgettable regular-season finale at the Polideportivo 3, pulling off a breathtaking late-match comeback to capture the gold medal at the Lima Women’s Team Sabre World Cup. Trailing top-seeded tournament favorites France 40–36 ahead of the final bout, AIN's anchor Alina Mikhailova produced an absolute masterclass on the strip. Mikhailova unleashed an incredible 9–3 run against Olympic silver medallist Sara Balzer to capture the title 45–43.
The stunning golden finish marks AIN’s second team World Cup title of the 2025–26 circuit, mirroring their early-season breakthrough in Tashkent.
France took home a highly competitive silver medal to add to their exceptionally dense trophy room this campaign. Hungary locked down the bronze medal, while Poland concluded their weekend in fourth place.
Path to the Podium
AIN (World number 7) proved their elite clutch pedigree by surviving razor-thin margins early before finding their dominant rhythm. The quartet of individual bronze medallist Yana Egorian, Aleksandra Mikhailova, Alina Mikhailova, and Olga Nikitina opened their account with a tense 45–43 victory over Ukraine. They caught fire from there, soundly routing powerhouse South Korea 45–30 in the quarter-finals before executing an authoritative 45–24 dismantling of Poland in the semi-finals.
In the final, AIN held a narrow 15–14 edge after three legs but France seized total control during the middle tiers to lead 30–25. With the match slipping away, Aleksandra Mikhailova kickstarted the revival in the seventh leg, out-scoring Toscane Tori 9–5 to cut the deficit to a single point (35–34). Though France's individual champion Sarah Noutcha stabilized her team to hand over a 40–36 lead, Alina Mikhailova completely overpowered Balzer in the anchor leg to trigger wild celebrations.
France (World number 1) earned their spot in the gold medal match following a relentless day of offensive fencing, navigating past Hong Kong, China and Italy. In a high-voltage semi-final against world number 4 Hungary, the lead exchanged hands four distinct times. Hungary’s Liza Pusztai went on an 8–2 middle-leg tear against Noutcha to push the Hungarians up 30–27. However, Noutcha engineered an exceptional 8–3 rebound against Anna Spiesz in the penultimate leg to re-establish a 40–38 cushion, allowing Balzer to seal a thrilling 45–43 victory.
Hungary (World number 4) bounced back from their agonising, two-touch semi-final defeat to capture their second team podium of the season, adding a Lima bronze to their Algiers silver. The disciplined unit of individual bronze medallist Sugár Katinka Battai, Liza Pusztai, Anna Spiesz, and Luca Szűcs took complete control of the third-place play-off against Poland. They established a comfortable 15–12 cushion early and used sharp tactical variation to expand it into a 30–24 lead after six fights, comfortably cruising over the finish line for a 45–36 win.
Poland (World number 12) put on a magnificent display of competitive fencing to secure an impressive top-four finish, replicating their result from the Tashkent World Cup. The roster—featuring Julia Cieslar, Zuzanna Cieslar, Maria Wieckiewicz, and Gabriela Wojcik—became the bracket's ultimate giant-killers by stringing together a brilliant 45–41 victory over world number 5 USA before out-lasting Azerbaijan 45–44 in a quarter-final absolute cliffhanger.
