ATHENS - The United States won its first fencing medals in 20 years Tuesday, a bronze by an Atlanta-area competitor and a gold by Mariel Zagunis in the saber competition.<br>
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Zagunis beat Tan Xue of China 15-to-9 in the final, giving the United States two of the three medals. Sada Jacobson of Dunwoody, just north of Atlanta, won the bronze, beating Catalina Gheorghitoaia of Romania 15-to-7.<br>
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The United States had never won a medal in women's fencing. The last American medal in the sport was in Los Angeles in 1984, when Peter Westbrook won the bronze in men's saber.<br>
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Tan beat Jacobson 15-to-12 in one semifinal to reach the gold-medal match.<br>
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In the quarterfinals, Jacobson beat Leonore Perrus of France 15-to-11. Perrus had knocked out Sada's sister, Emily, 15-to-13 in the round of 16, preventing the sisters from playing each other.<br>
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In men's epee competition, Soren Thompson of San Diego upset Number Two seed Alfredo Rota of Italy to reach the quarterfinals, where he lost to Russia's Pavel Kolobkov, the 2000 gold medalist.<br>
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Sada Jacobson trailed in the early going against Perrus, but took the lead at 4-to-3 and never relinquished it, defending her family pride in the process.<br>
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Zagunis, of Beaverton, Oregon, defeated Elena Jemayeva of Azerbaijan 15-to-11 to advance to the semifinals.<br>
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Sada Jacobson is ranked Number One in the world, and Zagunis is ranked fourth. Tan is Number Five.<br>
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Women's saber is the newest of fencing's six disciplines and is making its first appearance in the Olympics. The first world championship in women's saber was held in 1999.<br>
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Saber is the fastest of fencing's three weapons. The target area is the entire body above the bend in the hips, including the head. Unlike in foil and epee, saber fencers can score with either the tip or the edge of the blade.
