
AS OLYMPICS LOOM, SAMANDI REFLECTS ON THE JOURNEY
Written by Abby Deveney Mohamed Rayan Samandi has roamed from his home country and continent to France, England and fencing halls far and wide in his bid to be the best. The journey hasn’t been easy, but it has been successful. The Tunisian foilist will soon be kitting up at the summer Olympics in Japan, returning to competition he knows so well. But Samandi, a two-time African men’s foil champion, is more than an Olympian – he is a familiar face in the ZFW fencing salle. Sam

DAVID SOSNOV RISES TO THE CHALLENGE
Written by Abby Deveney Persistence paid off for ZFW’s David Sosnov, who claimed a gold medal in the under-15 age group at June’s Challenge Wratislavia International Children’s Competition in Poland. It wasn’t Sosnov’s first podium performance at the highly competitive event; he won a silver medal and a bronze fighting in two prior age groups in previous years. Competing for the last time at the competition in Wroclaw, however, this year’s victory was surely the sweetest. “It