29 Jan 2023
Aspire Academy’s Jaber Al-Fadaaq performed really well on Saturday as he progressed from the pool stage of FIE Epee Grand Prix Doha 2023.
He was one of seven Aspire student-athletes taking part in the event for epee fighters, that attracted 238 fencers from around the globe and was held in the academy’s dome on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
The FIE Epee Grand Prix Doha 2023 was the 14th such event hosted and sponsored by Aspire Academy over the years in conjunction with the Qatar Fencing Federation.
The events were eventually dominated by the reigning world champions with Hungary’s Gergely Siklosi winning the men’s category and Brazil’s Nathalie Moellhausen the women’s.
Al-Fadaaq, 17, earned two victories in his group as he beat Hassan Abed of Saudi Arabia and China’s Zhongming Huang. His results were enough for him to qualify for the knockout stages the first Qatari athlete to do so in epee. He then gained a third victory as he beat Udaivir Singh of India before losing to Ho Tin Ng of Hong Kong. Al Fadaaq eventually ended up being 160th overall.
The events were eventually by the reigning world champions with Hungary’s Gergely Siklosi winning the men’s category and Brazil’s Nathalie Moellhausen the women’s.
Aspire Academy’s head fencing coach, Massimo Omeri, said the Grand Prix will help the student-athletes get ready to take part in the upcoming Asian Junior and Cadet Championships.
“We have an important event in March so this is part of our preparations, so I am hoping they will benefit from taking part in this competition,” he explained.
“This is a senior competition, one of the most important competitions in the world for epee and it helps us improve, especially mentally.”
“(The student-athletes learn that) You shouldn’t be afraid even, if it is clear that your opponent is better than you – you have to play and not be scared.”
Two other Aspire Academy student-athletes earned wins in their pools as Muhammad Abdulali, 16, beat Tim Zhe Guang Shee of Singapore while the youngest fencer at the Grand Prix, 13-year-old Youssef Abdeltawab, overcame Germany’s Richard Schmidt.
As well as his win Abdulali will have gained valuable experience at the Grand Prix having fought Switzerland’s Max Heinze, who has won numerous events during his career. The young student-athlete also gave Great Britain’s Elliott Grover and hard fight before being edged out 5-4.
“It is cool seeing what Qatar is producing – 16 is still very young in this game and you can fence until you are 35-36,” Grover said after his win over Abdulali.
“I think there is still knowledge of the game and how to play the game assertively to work on.”
“At 16 what is good here will be good on the cadet circuit – you get experience here where you can transfer it to those events.”
“Atmosphere is important to learn about and being in the pool with the likes of Max Heinze – one the greatest with over 10 World Cup wins. To compete against him is important because you are going to be nervous and you are going to have a couple of rough seasons where you are going to get beaten and that exposure is important.”
The other Aspire Academy student-athletes who took part in the Grand Prix were Abdulrahman Al Jadra, Meshaal Al Qahtani, Mohammed Al Hazaa and Mohammed Al Oulan.
Ahead of the Grand Prix the Italian Embassy in Doha organized "Beauty in an Act: A Fencing Workshop with Italian Masters", with the support of the Italian and Qatari fencing federations as well as Aspire Academy.
Like the Grand Prix the event was held in the Aspire Dome and gave young fencing amateurs and athletes the opportunity to train and learn from some of the most renowned Italian coaches and athletes.
There was a good turnout of people for the event with many youngsters aiming to earn a place at Aspire Academy enjoying the lessons from the experts. The coaches offering their knowledge included the Head Coach of the Italian National Fencing Team, Dario Chiadò and trainers Roberto Cirillo as well as Daniele Pantoni.
Aspire Academy’s Head of Fencing Massimo Omeri was also on hand to offer his expertise. Alongside the coaches were Italian national team athletes Giulia Rizzi (winner of the last World Cup round in Vancouver), Roberta Marzani, Nicol Foietta and Gaia Traditi.
The initiative by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation in collaboration with Italian fencing federation is aimed at promoting Italy’s tradition and excellence.