Dimitri Coutya Close To Gold in Paralympic Fencing

Former St. Benedict's pupil brings back four medal haul from Tokyo

Dimitri Coutya celebrates another win. Picture: Paralympics GB

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Dimitri Coutya, the 23-year-old wheelchair fencer from Ealing, was a whisker away from a gold medal in the Paralympics this Saturday (28 August).

In the event a narrow defeat to the eventual winner and reigning champion, Feng Yanke of China, meant that he had to rally to claim a bronze in the foil B class. A more comfortable win over the Russian, Albert Kamalov later that day gained him his third bronze of the tournament having also finished third in men's épée B and the men's team épée.

He then went on to win silver in the men’s team foil along with Piers Gilliver and Oliver Lam-Watson on Sunday evening.

He took up fencing at St. Benedict’s School and was spotted by in competitions by coaches for the GB team. After winning a bronze in the 2011 UK School Games he decided to focus on his fencing and aim to compete at Rio. Participation in the BPA’s Paralympic Inspiration Programme during London 2012 only increased his ambition to be an Olympian. By 2014, Dimitri had broken through at international level winning a bronze medal win in the foil at the World Cup in Eger, Hungary. In 2015, he went on to win five World Cup medals in both foil and epée and, at the age of 17, he won silver in the foil event at the 2015 IWAS Wheelchair Fencing World Championships in Eger, Hungary. He made the quarter-finals at Rio but continued to rank highly in international competitions claiming double world gold in 2017.

Dimitri said: “I didn’t really have time to process the semi-final as I had to go pretty much straight back into the call-room for the bronze medal match.

“I will have to take some time later to get over today’s disappointment of not making the final but I am proud that I was able to push through and ensure I won the bronze.

“It has been incredible to be here. The Paralympic Games is incredible; it can be a bit overwhelming so I am really proud of myself and my team for preparing us so well to ensure we take all the positives out of the experience without being overwhelmed.”

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September 2, 2021