THE ROAD FROM
RIO TO TOKYO

Dear friends,
As we move towards the end of what has been a momentous year, the global fencing family can look back with pride at its achievements.

There is no doubt that in the life of every sportsman and in each sporting organisation the Olympic Games mark the culmination of the four-year cycle. In 2016, the fans of our sport were rewarded with some gripping duels between the best fencers in the world. In Rio de Janeiro we witnessed fencing of the highest quality, a strong competitive spirit and a genuine desire to win!

Fencing has never enjoyed such international popularity as it does now, and to reinforce that point medals were won by fencers from 10 different countries and four different continents. Several countries, such as the Ivory Coast and Benin, took part for the very first time. The Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro were a powerful growth driver for the popularity of fencing in South America.

I would like to thank the International Olympic Committee represented by Mr. Bach, the Organising Committee in Rio de Janeiro and all the volunteers, officials, spectators, coaches and athletes who made it such an unforgettable Olympic fencing tournament.

World fencing has already embarked on the next cycle and is now preparing for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. In the meantime, the third series of the Fencing Grand Prix in the 2016-17 season is approaching. New regional venues for this competition include Long Beach, California; Bogota, Colombia; and Cancun, Mexico.

Our World Championships will take place as usual at the end of the season, this time in Leipzig, Germany, where they were first held in 2005. Our Junior & Cadet World Championships, meanwhile, return to Plovdiv in Bulgaria, where competitions of a very high standard took place in 2014. Everyone who loves our sport will be eagerly awaiting absorbing duels ahead and new names making their mark in world fencing!

The 95th FIE Congress will be taking place very soon in Moscow, where the President, the Executive Committee and Members of the Commissions will all be elected for a new four-year term. It has been my pleasure and privilege to serve as your President for the past four years. I am confident that together with the newly elected team, we will ensure the dynamic development of fencing and I believe that world fencing will enjoy further success at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.

Alisher Usmanov
FIE President