Anja Fichtel

Anja Fichtel-Mauritz (born August 17, 1968 née Fichtel) is a German fencer born in Baden-Württemberg. She won the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul in individual and team competition, and the individual competition of the World Championchip in 1986 and 1990. She was winner of the World Championships in 1985, 1989, 1993 as a member of the national German team and second in team competition at the 1992 Summer Olympics. From 1986 until 1996 Fichtel was winner of the German championship.

Biography

German women fencers in foil were repeatedly winning the world championships in both individual and team competitions. Anja Fichtel won an individual gold prize. Her predecessors, Heidi Schmidt, the winner of the World Cup in 1961, Cornelia Hanisch, who won three gold awards in 1979, 1981 and 1985, and her successor Sabine Bau, who became the strongest fencer of the world in 1998, have made history of fencing in Germany, and worldwide. Anja is remembered by her contemporaries not only by victories, but for her uncompromised vigorous fencing style.

Fichtel left no room for victory to her competitors. She had a forceful offence, unlike other female fencers, but off the field, she was a charming coquettish girl.Fact|date=September 2008

Elena Grishina recalls: “Appearance of Anja Fichtel in foil fencing has drastically changed our view on that type of weapon. Earlier the foil fencers would exchange technical tricks for a long while, using parries and counter-parries, attacks with multiple riposte and parat riposte, attacks with multiple binds and disengagements. Anja used to advance with three quick balestra, then stepped back, forcing her opponent to come closer, then she threw her arm above her head and vigorously attacked with a large lunge, making it almost half-size of the strip. She would aim the hit either at the shoulder or the back of competitor, and there was practically no chance to avoid it».Fact|date=September 2008Who|date=September 2008

Russian spectators met Anja for the first time in 1990, when the “Russian Cup”, an international tournament in foil fencing for women was held in Moscow. All fencing elite arrived to the USSR capital. The competitions of the Russian Cup were arranged under the new rules.Fact|date=September 2008

Only the foil fencer, who did not lose any bout, could receive the highest award. Anja Fichtel, who at 22 had already won the titles of the World Championship and the Olympic games, was the favorite to win. Before her final bouts, Anja said that she came to win. At the same time, in an interview to the “Soviet Sport” reporter she said that she was brought to fencing by her brother Klaus, when she was 10. She trained in the “Tauberbishoffsheim” Fencing Center. Like any trainee of the Center, she works four hours per day at a furniture factory and is trained three-four hours every day, excluding Monday. At that time Fichtel shared her idea to quit fencing strip in two years. “One should go in for sports while it gives pleasure. I have already achieved everything in fencing, but there are so many other interesting things in life – I need to get a profession and to obtain other knowledge, to see a lot of interesting things”.Fact|date=September 2008

A year later, Anja came to Moscow again to achieve another victory at the “Russian Cup”.

Seven weeks prior to the Olympics in Barcelona, Anja gave birth to her son Lauren. She joined her husband Torsten Mauritz to Austria, and her surname was changed to Fichtel-Mauritz. Despite all those changes in her private life, she represented Germany at the team Olympics and with her team-partners and took second place after the Italian fencers.

The Russians met Fichtel in Moscow in 1993. At the “Russian Cup”, she lost to Diane Byakendy and took second place. In March 1997, Anja announced her retirement, and in October of the same year she gave birth to her second baby, and in 2007 her third child was born. Her elder son Lauren took after Anja, and won one of the most prestigious tournaments of Germany.

Palmarès

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References

* [http://fencing-future.com/ "For Future of Fencing" International Charity Fund website] (original source of this article)
* [http://www.fie.ch/download/en%20bref/fr/Palmares-fra.pdf Palmarès] of the Fédération Internationale d'Escrime