Sabre Team Results
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Sabre Team Results
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Date
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August 1936
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1
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16
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3
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3
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en
SABRE TEAM RESULTS
An upset victory by Germany over the United States in the semi-final, 9-7, followed by an expected 14-2 trouncing at the hands of Hungary’s champions, eliminated the American sabremen.
The 22 starting teams were divided into 7 pools, the U.S.A. drawing the 4-team pool with Switzerland, Jugoslavia, and Turkey. The first match against the Swiss was won easily. Miguel de Capriles led with 4 victories, being touched only 8 times. Bruder and Huffman each won 3, and Bolleslavski broke even with 2 wins.
Meanwhile, Turkey defeated Jugoslavia 9-7 and insisted on following the regular schedule which matched them with the U.S. The result was another victory for the Americans, by 14-2. Huffman and Bruder won 4 each, with only 6 and 8 touches received respectively. Armitage and Stewart each won 3. Meanwhile the Swiss defeated a demoralized Jugoslavian team, and Turkey reached the second round by beating the Swiss.
There Turkey was drawn again with the U.S., but preferred to default the match while Poland was beating Sweden 15-1. The Americans then met Sweden and won 9-1, six bouts remaining unfenced, as Poland defeated Turkey 9-2. In the Swedish match Huffman won his 3 bouts, Bruder and M. de Capriles 2; and Norman Armitage won 2 and lost 1. There were 4 American 5-0 victories.
The following morning, the semi-final matches began. The U.S. won a hard-fought match from Holland 9-7, none of the Americans showing as well as they did the first day. Armitage led with three victories, while Huffman and M. de Capriles and Bruder each won 2. In the same pool, Hungary beat Germany 15-1.
Then Germany and the U.S. met in the crucial semi-final match. Huffman, veteran of many continental encounters, got off to a 4-2 lead on Wahl but could not hold it and lost 5-4. Armitage beat Hein 5-2. Casmir squeezed out a 5-4 win over Stewart, but Bruder squared the match by beating Eisenhoeker 5-2. Then the American team lost three in a row, as Huffman, Armitage, and Stewart lost to Casmir, Hein, and Eisenhoeker. Bruder won from Wahl as Germany led 8-3 at the halfway mark. Huffman and Armitage lost to Casmir and Eisenhoeker while Stewart beat Wahl. Hein then defeated Bruder 5-4 to put Germany ahead 8-4. At this point, the American team rallied, Huffman scoring his only victory, 5-4, over Eisenhoeker, Armitage beating Wahl 5-1, and Stewart defeating Hein 5-3. The final bout pitted Bruder against Casmir, and was a decisive battle. A victory for Bruder would put the Americans in the final on touches. A defeat would give Germany the match. Casmir, who was the backbone of the German team, won 5-1.
Hungary beat Holland 15-1. The U.S. then met Hungary and lost 14-2. Armitage beat Dr. Rajczy 5-3, and M. de Capriles beat Kovacs 5-3. Two beautiful bouts which were lost 5-4 were fenced between Kovacs and de Nagy, and Garay and de Capriles. Germany, on the other strip, after dropping the first two bouts, would not be denied and defeated Holland by winning 9 of the next 10 bouts.
The American team, winning 4 matches on the first day, with the loss of only 7 bouts, was favored to win 3rd place. In the German match, however, there were five 5-4 bouts; Germany won four of them. That is the story of the debacle of the sabre team. Bruder, who had been unbeatable during practice, was below his peak, as was Armitage. Huffman had a bad day, for normally he was considered good for 3 bouts against the Germans. On the other hand, M. de Capriles and Stewart excelled expectations. The latter, particularly, with more experience should prove a bulwark of strength for future Olympiads.
In the final, Italy gave Hungary a stiff fight, leading 4-3 when Kabos rose to superb heights to tie the score with a victory over Harzi after the latter had built up a 4-1 advantage. Thereafter the Hungarians won 4 in a row to lead 8-4 and won the match when Dr. Rajczy defeated Masciotta. The Poles, who had worn themselves out trying to beat the Italians and the Hungarians, fell easy prey to the inspired Germans, 9-3. The indomitable Casmir, with 3 wins in 3 starts, led his team to a well-earned third place.
