CAIRO – Egypt continues to strengthen its position as a venue for mega sports events. Following the success of the 2021 IHF World Men’s Handball Championship, the Egyptian capital will now play host to the Junior & Cadet World Fencing Championships beginning today the 3rd of April until the 11th of the same month at the Cairo Stadium Indoor Halls Complex.
This year’s Championships will include 18 individual and team events in three weapons scheduled for young men and women from around the world.
It will be the first Junior & Cadet World Fencing Championships since Toru, Poland hosted the event in 2019. The 2020 edition was originally scheduled to be in Salt Lake City, USA before the International Fencing Federation (FIE) canceled it last July due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Egypt was first nominated to host the Junior World Fencing Championships 2021 in December 2018. Following the results of voting in a conference held in Lausanne last 2019, the FIE named Egypt as the host of Junior & Cadet World Championship 2021. It was not a difficult victory for Egypt as 126 countries voted for them while only four voted against them. Three countries did not make a vote due to their absence in the conference.
In a statement made on Facebook, the Egyptian Fencing Federation President Abdelmoneim Elhusseiny praised the FIE’s decision claiming that Egypt is the first country to host both senior and junior championships in the same year.
Cairo first hosted the World Fencing Championships in 1949, but the event never stepped foot in the African continent since. As a result of being issued the hosting rights for the 2021 edition, Egypt will host the World Fencing Championships for the second time.
It will be another tournament bubble for the World Championships to ensure the health and safety of all athletes, coaches, officials, and staff. Comprehensive operations and logistics plans will again be executed to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Face masks will be required at all times except when competing, as will social distancing and not shaking hands.
In a letter to the participating nations, FIE president Alisher Usmanov said: “We are working closely with the Egyptian Fencing Federation which has done an impressive amount of work. Your life, health and safety are the main priorities for our federation and for me personally.”
Edited by Aldo Tong
