Wayne State University Athletics

Men's Fencing 7/22/2024 12:48:00 PM Jeff Weiss, Senior Associate Director of Athletics/Media Relations

Wayne State To Be Represented At Paris Olympics By Two Fencers

Elsissy and Mahmoud Elsayed are hading to Paris.

DETROIT -- A WSU alum sabreist and an incoming freshman epeeist will both be representing their native Egypt at the 2024 Summer Olympics which begins this Friday in Paris.

Ziad Elsissy, who earned his bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from WSU in 2018, is currently ranked No. 1 in the world in men's sabre. The three time Fencing All-American was also a two-time CoSIDA Academic All-American (First Team At-Large in 2017 and Second Team At-Large in 2018). On the strip, he finished seventh in 2015 at the NCAA Championships, did not compete in 2016 at NCAAs due to international competition, then was the national runner-up the next two seasons to Harvard's Eli Dershwitz (15-10 in 2017 and 15-14 in 2018).

Elsissy's second Olympic competition will start on July 27th in the round of 64 at 10:25 a.m. in Paris. The next three rounds are slated for 12:30 p.m. (round of 32), 3 p.m. (round of 16) and 4:15 p.m. (quarterfinals). The semifinals will either be at 7:50 p.m. or 8:15 p.m., with the bronze medal bout at 9:05 p.m. and the gold medal bout at 9:55 p.m.

Ziad is also slated to participate in the men's Team Sabre event on July 31st.

In Tokyo three years ago, Elsissy helped Egypt place fifth in the team competition after being seeded eighth, and he finished 14th individually.

"Being a part of WSU and especially as a student-athlete had a huge impact on who I am today," commented Elsissy. "I'm always grateful for the time in school. Wayne State and Detroit has a big part in my heart and I can't wait to bring home the fourth gold medal in WSU history after Maragaret Woodbridge Presley [400m swimming freestyle relay team in Antwerp, Belgium] in 1920; Lorenzo Wright [400-m track relay team in London, England] in 1948; and Cynthia Goyette [400m swimming medley relay in Tokyo] in 1964. Let's go Warriors!!"

Incoming freshman Mahmoud Elsayed has also been selected to head to Paris. The younger brother of recent WSU graduate Ahmed Elsayed, Mahmoud is currently ranked 14th in the world in the junior men's epee weapon.

The men's epee individual competition is scheduled for July 28th, while the men's team epee event is slated for August 2nd.

"I am incredibly proud to represent Egypt at the Olympics," remarked Mahmoud. "It is a dream come true after 15 years of hard work, dedication, and support from my family, coaches, and teammates. I started fencing when I was four years old. I believed at the beginning of my journey in fencing that one day I will make it to the Olympics and why not to have a medal in less than one month from now. Everything is possible if you believe in yourself and work hard for this dream. This opportunity is not just a personal achievement but also a chance to inspire young athletes and teenagers in Egypt and around the world that you can achieve anything you want if you believe in yourself and work hard for it."

When asked about what he is most looking forward to at the Olympics, Mahmoud mentioned "I will compete in the teams event on August 2nd. I am not going there just for fun or for taking photos at the Olympic rings. I am focused on my dream and looking forward to giving it my all and try to get a Olympic medal and share the stage with the best athletes in the world."

When asked about coming to Wayne State next month, Mahmoud stated "I am very excited to join Wayne State and to be a part of the fencing team. I look forward to winning an NCAA title more than one time. Also I want to share my fencing experience with all my teammates inside the field and outside. I am very happy to have the chance to train with a champion like Ahmed Elsayed and learn from him. Finally, I am motivated to join the Wayne State community, both academically and socially, and to grow both as an athlete and as an individual."

WAYNE STATE AND THE OLYMPICS

This is the third consecutive summer Olympics that WSU has been represented with Elsissy competing in fencing at the 2020-21 Olympics in Tokyo, following men's basketball's Shane Lawal, who competed in the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil for Nigeria.

J. Kenneth Doherty won a bronze medal in the Decathlon at the 1928 games in Amsterdam.
Swimmer Gordon Kerr at the 1936 games in Berlin.
Fencer Byron Krieger competed in both 1952 in Helsinki and 1956 in Melbourne.
Rower James Gardiner won a Silver Medal at the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne, Australia.
Swimmer Farid "Jack" Zablith represented his native Brazil at the 1960 in Rome and 1964 in Tokyo.
Cross country and track runner Goetz Klopfer was a two-time member of the United States Olympic Track and Field team as a racewalker. Klopfer placed 10th in the 50-kilometer walk with a time of 4:39:13.8 at the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City, Mexico and finished 19th in the 20-kilometer walk at the 1972 Olympic Games held in Munich, West Germany.
Fencer Greg Benko competed in four Olympics - 1972 in Munich, 1976 in Montreal, 1980 in Moscow and 1984 in Los Angeles for his native Australia.
Swimmer Fernando Costa represented his native Portugal at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece.
Speedskater Jeanne Omelenchuk participated in three Olympics - 1960 in Squaw Valley, 1968 in Grenoble, and 1972 in Sapporo.

If anyone was accidentally omitted, please contact sports information director Jeff Weiss at jeff.weiss@wayne.edu. Those who qualified and either did not compete or attend were not included.

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Players Mentioned

Ahmed Elsayed: Epee; 6' 3"; Graduate Student

Players Mentioned

Ahmed Elsayed
: 6' 3"; Graduate Student
: Epee