Amita defies the odds to finish 5th at US Fencing C’ships

SINGAPORE — On paper, the USA Fencing National Championships individual foil quarter-final tie yesterday between America’s Nicole Ross and Singaporean Amita Berthier looked like a huge mismatch.

Ranked fifth in the world, Ross is a former Olympian who has more than a decade of experience in the sport under her belt.

In contrast, 16-year-old Amita — ranked 132 rungs lower — was competing in the senior category of the competition for the first time.

But if Ross thought she was going to get an easy ride against Amita, she was sorely mistaken.

Instead, the 28-year-old found herself pushed to the limit by a gutsy and fearless Amita, who, at one point, even managed to take a 10-9 lead over her rival.

However, Ross’ superior experience and stamina proved decisive in the latter stages of the bout, and she eventually managed to record a 15-11 victory over Amita.

While she may have fallen just short of claiming the biggest scalp of her budding fencing career, Amita, who won a cadet women’s foil bronze at the World Junior and Cadet Championships in April, told TODAY she was still pleased that she acquitted herself well against such a strong opponent.

“I’m pleased to have kept the score tight against Nicole, but I was especially happy that I managed to frazzle her during the bout,” said Amita.

She moved to Boston late last year to train at the Marx Fencing Academy.

“She (Ross) was looking worried, and I could see that she was growing increasingly frustrated because she began arguing with the referee several times.

“It’s not always that I get an opportunity to fence such a top-ranked fencer, and to be able to hold my own against her is a huge confidence booster.

“It also taught me that if I use all my skill, give my best and fence without fear, anything is possible.”

Amita’s coach, Ralf Bissdorf, also heaped praise on his charge for exceeding expectations in reaching the quarter-finals.

The German and former Olympic silver medallist said: “Getting fifth is a much better result than I expected because she’s still very new to the senior category, and here in this tournament, you have fencers who are in the top-10 in the world.

“I was only hoping for her to get into the top-16 at best, but the fact that she not only reached the top eight, but managed to put on such a feisty display against a fencer like Nicole, shows you just how much talent she has.”

Despite losing in the quarter-finals, Amita still managed to bring home a medal by virtue of finishing fifth.

This is because the top eight fencers of the championship are all awarded medals, with the rankings of fifth to eighth being decided based on the quality of opponents they had faced during the competition.

The other Singaporean fencers who competed in the senior foil competition were Maxine Wong and Nicole Wong, who finished 25th and 38th respectively.

Amita’s medal is the second that Singapore has ever won in the championship, following Maxine’s bronze in the junior (Under-20) women’s individual foil last Sunday.