The men's masters foil was one of three fencing events on the Fencing at the 1896 Summer Olympics programme. It was the only event at the Games for professional athletes and was held immediately after the amateur event on 7 April. It consisted of a single match, between Leonidas Pyrgos of Greece and Joanni Perronet of France. Pyrgos won the match, 3–1, to become the first Greek champion in the modern Olympics.
| Men's masters foil at the Games of the I Olympiad | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Leonidas Pyrgos | |||||||
| Venue | Zappeion | ||||||
| Date | 7 April 1896 | ||||||
| Competitors | 2 from 2 nations | ||||||
| Medalists | |||||||
| |||||||
Background
editThis was the first appearance of the event, which was held only once more. Fencing masters were an exception to the amateurs-only nature of the early Olympics. Masters fencing was held as an Olympic event in 1896 (men's foil only) and 1900 (all three weapons for men, as well as a special event in épée that pitted the top professionals against the top amateurs). By 1904, only amateur events were conducted.[1]
Competition format
editWith only two fencers, the competition consisted of a single bout. The bout was to three touches. Standard foil rules were used, including that touches had to be made with the tip of the foil, the target area was limited to the torso, and priority determined the winner of double touches.[1][2][3]
Schedule
editThe exact time of the master's event is not known. The fencing began at 10 a.m. on the second day of events with the (amateur) men's foil, followed by the master's foil. The Official Report notes that the fencing ended at noon.[2]
| Date | Time | Round | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gregorian | Julian | ||
| Tuesday, 7 April 1896 | Tuesday, 26 March 1896 | Late morning | Semifinals Final |
Results
editPyrgos won the only bout, 3–1.
| Pos | Fencer | W | L | TF | TA | LP | JP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
 Leonidas Pyrgos (GRE)
|
1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 3–1 | ||
|
 Joanni Perronet (FRA)
|
0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1–3 |
References
edit- ^ a b "Foil, Masters, Individual, Men". Olympedia. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
- ^ a b Official Report, p. 67.
- ^ "Athens 1896 Fencing Foil Masters Men Results". Olympics.com. Retrieved 2021-09-03.
- Lampros, S.P.; Polites, N.G.; De Coubertin, Pierre; Philemon, P.J.; Anninos, C. (1897). The Olympic Games: BC 776 – AD 1896. Athens: Charles Beck. (Digitally available at [1])
- Mallon, Bill; Widlund, Ture (1998). The 1896 Olympic Games. Results for All Competitors in All Events, with Commentary. Jefferson: McFarland. ISBN 0-7864-0379-9. (Excerpt available at [2])
- Smith, Michael Llewellyn (2004). Olympics in Athens 1896. The Invention of the Modern Olympic Games. London: Profile Books. ISBN 1-86197-342-X.