Tag: Fencing Junior World Cup

As two of Africa’s most active fencers in 2025, the Idongesit siblings, Sara and Mahathir, will open their 2026 season at the FIE Junior World Cup taking place in Cairo, Egypt, between January 30  and 31.

Their participation highlights the progress of youth fencing in Nigeria and underscores the continued efforts of the Nigeria Fencing Federation to identify, nurture, and promote young talent internationally.

Sara and Mahathir have demonstrated remarkable commitment, discipline, and growth in their fencing journey, earning the opportunity to compete at this prestigious event against some of the world’s best, including World No. 1 junior men’s fencer Schembri Kruz of the Virgin Islands.

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The Nigerian two-athlete contingent will depart on Sunday, January 25, and are expected to join the FIE-organised training camp under the supervision of top coaches at the Indoor Hall of Cairo Stadium.

Sara will compete in the women’s junior category, while Mahathir faces stiff competition in the men’s event against elite opponents such as Kruz, World No. 5 Chen Bing-Jyun of Chinese Taipei, World No. 3 Pelle Domonkos of Hungary, and Africa’s No. 1 Shamel Youssef of Egypt, who is also ranked World No. 6.

Based in Malaysia, the Idongesit siblings made their international debut for Nigeria at the 2025 African Championships in Lagos.

Since then, they have featured in several international tournaments, gaining valuable experience ahead of the 2026 Commonwealth Championships, scheduled to take place in Lagos this August.

Over 30 countries will participate in the two-day FIE-sanctioned tournament, including Egypt (host), Algeria, Russia, Angola, Australia, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Brazil, Bahrain, Bulgaria, Chile, China, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Spain, Estonia, France, Great Britain, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Hungary, Italy, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Mexico, Mauritius, Nigeria, Norway, New Zealand, Oman, Panama, Poland, Qatar, Romania, Singapore, Switzerland, Slovakia, Chinese Taipei, Turkey, Ukraine, and the United States.

Nigeria’s rising fencing talents, Mahadi and Mahathir Idongesit, will be among the 60 competitors at this weekend’s International Fencing Federation (FIE) Junior Epee World Cup in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

Originally slated for Lagos, the tournament was relocated to Uzbekistan after the Nigeria Fencing Federation opted to redirect its resources toward hosting a more suitable Commonwealth Championships in 2026.

The Idongesit brothers, who made their international debut for Nigeria at the 2025 African Championships in Lagos, are eager to test their skills against some of the world’s best. Mahadi currently holds a global ranking of 595, while Mahathir is placed at 608. Both will face stiff competition from highly-rated Egyptian stars, including world No. 4 Youssef Shamel and world No. 8 Eslam Osama.

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The event will also feature fencers from Azerbaijan, Egypt, Greece, Hong Kong, Kazakhstan, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Chinese Taipei, and host nation Uzbekistan.

Speaking ahead of the tournament, Adeyinka Samuel, President of the Nigeria Fencing Federation, expressed optimism about Nigeria’s return to the international stage:“We are excited that our fencers are back in action after months of inactivity, particularly with the return of fencing tournaments. We are confident that their participation will help them gain valuable experience ahead of the Commonwealth Championships. We hope more of our fencers will return to action and begin competing at top level, because they need these experiences to measure up against the rest of the Commonwealth nations in 2026.