Olga Kharlan of Ukraine successfully defended her title with a 15-13 defeat of US star Mariel Zagunis in an exhilarating women’s final. The world No.3 raced into a 7-2 lead but Zagunis, the Olympic gold medalist from Athens and Beijing, mounted a stirring comeback, forcing Kharlan to dig deep for victory.

Shanghai (CHN)

Foil, 3-5 June

Arianna Errigo claimed her fourth title of the season with a 15-8 victory over Lee Kiefer of the United States to win the Westgate Shopping Mall Shanghai Fencing Grand Prix in women’s foil. The Italian beat Kiefer in the final of the Havana Grand Prix earlier in the season and scored an even more convincing win in China, host for the last Grand Prix of the season. The world’s top men’s foilist, Alexander Massialas of the United States, proved he will be the man to beat at the Rio Olympics this summer with a lightning-fast victory over South Korea’s Lee Kwanghyun. The world silver medalist needed less than two minutes of the first round to overwhelm Lee, the world No. 34, by a score of 15-5 and clinch a second title of the season.