🇮🇹 VOLPI VINDICATED WITH GOLD IN LIMA AS USA’S LUNG BREAKS THROUGH
Updated: Aug 5
LIMA, PERU — 22 MARCH 2026
Two-time World Champion Alice Volpi (ITA) reasserted her elite standing on the global stage, capturing the gold medal at the Lima Women’s Foil Grand Prix. In a masterful display of experience and technique, Volpi secured her 11th career Grand Prix podium—and her first major title of the 2025–26 season—by defeating Paris 2024 Olympic silver medallist Lauren Scruggs (USA) 15–11 in the final.
While Scruggs added a silver to the bronze she claimed at the Busan World Cup earlier this season, the talking point of the tournament was her 18-year-old compatriot Katerina Lung (USA). The teenager produced a sensational underdog run to secure bronze, marking her first senior international podium appearance.
The remaining bronze was claimed by World number 2 Martina Favaretto (ITA), who matched her third-place finish from this exact event last season to secure her third podium of a stellar campaign.
Path to the Podium
Alice Volpi (World number 22) was pushed to the absolute limit to secure her gold. After earning a bye to the round of 64 with a perfect pool performance, she safely navigated early rounds before facing a monumental round of 16 clash against domestic rival and fencing icon Arianna Errigo, edging it 15–14. In the semi-finals, Volpi had to rely on every ounce of her veteran savvy to hold off the fearless Lung, surviving another dramatic 15–14 cliffhanger before keeping her composure to win the final against Scruggs.
Lauren Scruggs (World number 13) enjoyed a fiercely dominant run through the early knockout stages, conceding no more than eight touches in any of her first four matches. Her most impressive tactical victory came in the semi-finals, where she fought past the formidable Favaretto 15–12 to guarantee an American presence in the gold medal bout.
Martina Favaretto (World number 2) put on a characteristically clinical display in Lima. Her path to the bronze included a 15–7 demolition of Germany’s Leonie Ebert in the quarter-finals, following a round of 16 advancement via medical withdrawal from Germany's Carolin Kleibrink. Her title charge was ultimately checked by a sharp Scruggs in the final four.
Katerina Lung (World number 91) was the revelation of the weekend. After battling through the preliminary rounds, she showed tremendous grit to win consecutive 15–14 nail-biters, first against Korea's Sim in the 64, and later in a stunning quarter-final upset over World number 12 and European bronze medallist Flóra Pásztor (HUN). Lung nearly caused the ultimate shock in the semi-finals, coming within a single touch of defeating Volpi before settling for a historic maiden senior bronze.
