Estonia's women's épée team climb to fourth place in world rankings

The Estonian women's épée team has risen to fourth place in the International Fencing Federation rankings after a strong performance at the World Championships in Hong Kong, where they secured the team silver medal. The team, consisting of Julia Beljajeva, Irina Embrich, Katrina Lehis, and Veronika Zuikova, moved up three spots from seventh place by earning 291 points.

In the individual events, the fencers underperformed, but as a team they advanced to the final, where they lost to Olympic champions Italy by a single point, 31-30. Along the way, Estonia defeated Olympic runners-up France in the quarterfinals and reigning European silver medalists Hungary in the semifinals.

Currently, only South Korea (376 points), Italy (316), and the United States (296) are ahead of Estonia in the rankings. This climb is significant because the top four teams automatically qualify for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. The qualification period will begin on April 1 next year.

Three of the four fencers – Lehis, Beljajeva, and Embrich – were part of the team that won gold at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, while Lehis also claimed individual bronze in Tokyo. At the Paris 2024 Olympics, another Estonian fencer, Nelli Differt, narrowly missed the medals in the individual event.