News

Twenty-five year old Anna Bashta from Azerbaijan claimed her first major Championship title in Antalya, Turkey on day three of the European Championships – taking gold in the Women’s Sabre event.

The World number two came into the event having claimed three circuit titles in the regular season. Losing a fight in the ranking round she went into the elimination stages ranked eighth. Victories against Martis (ROU) 15-8, teammate Kaspiarovich 15-14 and six-time European Champion, Kharlan (UKR) 15-14 led to a semi-final match against Zuzanna Ciesler (POL). Bashta dominated that encounter to win 15-6 for her place in the final.

Rosella Gregorio (ITA) faced Sara Balzer (FRA) in the other semi-final. Balzer dominated the early stages, but Gregorio came roaring back in the second period to win 15-11.

In the gold medal match, Gregorio and Bashta remained tight through the first period with score tightly poised at 8-7 going into the second period. Mastering both the distance and decision making, Bashta claimed her first ever major Championship title with a 15-9 victory.

Speaking after collecting her medal on the podium, Bashta said, “I’m very, very happy and this is the best. We came to Turkey two weeks ago to prepare as well as we could for this event. I now have to focus on my recovery so that we can go for a second gold medal in the team event for Azerbaijan.”

The competition continues with team events for Women’s Foil and Men’s Sabre on day four of the Championships. The full schedule is available here.