Welcome to a special First to 15 miniseries: The Golden Touch. The Golden Touch is a First to 15 miniseries exploring the thrilling journey of Team USA as they secured their first-ever gold medal in women’s team foil at the Paris 2024 Olympics. Join us as we speak to the athletes, their coaches, and key support staff who made history in one of the most unforgettable Olympic moments for USA Fencing. Today, we have Lee Kiefer, who is the most decorated women's foil fencer in US history and won two golds in Paris to go with her individual gold in Tokyo.
Welcome to a special First to 15 miniseries: The Golden Touch.
The Golden Touch is a First to 15 miniseries exploring the thrilling journey of Team USA as they secured their first-ever gold medal in women’s team foil at the Paris 2024 Olympics. Join us as we speak to the athletes, their coaches, and key support staff who made history in one of the most unforgettable Olympic moments for USA Fencing.
The first installment of our miniseries features Lee Kiefer, who is the most decorated women's foil fencer in US history and won two golds in Paris (individual and team) to go with her individual gold in Tokyo.
[INTRODUCTION]
[0:00:01] BW: Hello, and welcome to First to 15, the official podcast of USA Fencing. I'm your host, Bryan Wendell. And in this show, you're going to hear from some of the most inspiring, interesting, and insanely talented people in this sport we all love. First to 15 is for anyone in the fencing community. And even for those just checking out fencing to see what it's all about. Whether you're an Olympian, or Paralympian, a newcomer, a seasoned veteran, a fencing parent, a fan, or anyone else in this wonderful community, this podcast is for you. With that, let's get to today's episode. Enjoy.
[INTERVIEW]
[0:00:40] BW: Welcome to a special First to 15 miniseries episode, The Golden Touch. We're doing a deep dive into the thrilling journey of Team USA as they secured their first-ever gold medal in women's team foil at the Paris Olympics. In this miniseries, we're talking to the athletes, of course. But, also, their coaches, support staff, training partners, everyone who was a part this unforgettable moment in history of USA fencing.
Today, we have Lee Kiefer, who is the most decorated women's foil fencer in US history. And won two golds in Paris to go with her individual gold in Tokyo. Today, we're going to be mainly focusing on that team gold. Hey, Lee. Welcome back to the podcast.
[0:01:19] LK: Thanks. Thanks for having me.
[0:01:20] BW: Yeah. Last time we talked on the podcast you just had one gold medal. Now you have three. When you think back on your Olympic experience in Paris, specifically thinking of that August 1st team win, what do you remember most from that day? What still pops into your mind?
[0:01:39] LK: I guess the thing that is emotionally so prominent is when we beat Canada to make it into the finals. I think we all took a moment together to be like, "Oh, my God. We're going to be Olympic medalists together." And if you roll back the tape, Jackie and I were crying already. And we were celebrating like we had already won. And Ralf was like, "Reel it back in." And we're like, "Chill, Ralf. Come celebrate with us already."
[0:02:13] BW: Yeah. I want to dive into like each of the rounds. But, first, we have to of course touch on the individual medal. I think that was like four days before the team event. You got the gold there. You were the favorite. And ended up just dominating and looking amazing all day. Did that add to the pressure for you in the team event? Lessen the pressure at all knowing you were going to be leaving with another medal? Or how did that change the equation for you?
[0:02:43] LK: Yeah. I would say that question brings me a little bit back to Tokyo with the women's foil team then. We were a really close-knit group of people. We were all very experienced. And we thought we came in prepared, hungry. And we didn't fence well. Well, it's more complicated than not fencing well. We didn't have the last bout that we wanted. But I felt like I could have given a better performance personally.
And after I won my medal in Paris, I felt like one of my goals was to still be locked in for the team event. Because even Ralf was like, "You like –" because we always make a silly voice when we talk about Ralf. Because that's just Ralf's vibe.
[0:03:34] BW: You have to.
[0:03:36] LK: But he was like, "You seem so much more happy in team." And, honestly, after individual, I was like, "There is still work to be done." I need to like bring my focus for my ladies who worked so hard, too, and for myself again. All of those things kind of combined to like keep me hungry.
[0:03:58] BW: You didn't really allow yourself to have a, I guess, complete celebration, whatever that might look like in between the two even though you had a little bit of time. But you were still locked in. Which, I got to say, I noticed too. But it's interesting hearing your perspective obviously.
Okay. The morning of the team event. You wake up. What's the process? What's the routine like? I think you all started at fencing at maybe like 11, or noon, or something? It wasn't one of these knack starts where you're there at 8am or anything. But how was the preparation like? What do you remember from that morning?
[0:04:32] LK: Yeah. We spent all season trying to get in a good routine. Usually – well, the night before, we kind of discuss our timing. And we like to go to breakfast together. We like take the bus together and have our warmup time set. We're all on the same page. Definitely nervous. But sometimes it helps when you have company. Really, we have the schedule. In some ways, you could lessen the brain power because you knew you just have to show up. Be with everyone and like, I don't know, get moving.
[0:05:13] BW: Yeah. Yeah. It's interesting because it sounds like you're trying to make it feel like just another world cup team day. But, obviously, deep down, it's impossible with the venue and then the stakes of Olympic fencing where there's three matches is all you're going to fence that day. And the first one, if you had lost to China, then that's it. Right? No more chance out of metal. The pressure is at a maximum in the very beginning.
But before we get to China, let's talk about just the preparation not just the night before but in the years leading up to Paris. We talked about Ralf. That's obviously Coach Ralf Bissdorf. And the bracket comes out and you know like the different combinations. How do you start breaking down those opponents with Ralf and your teammates?
[0:06:05] LK: Yeah. Ralf has been the national coach for three years, I want to say. And every year, we get a little bit more organized. We get a little bit more put together. But props to Ralf. In the past year, he's been working on this big project where he's compiled different individual matches, different team matches. And then whenever we have our group video analysis, which we do about once a month, we have notes. We're not starting over every time. These notes aren't just like the opponent. But it's like how each of us feel about this opponent. Our individual strategies.
The day of, he had taken all of this data and kind of condensed it, which is something we had decided that we liked. We warm up for China. And then he also has a note card. Like, "Lee, you like this. Jackie. Lauren." And so, yeah, we've just been processing, practicing. And then, I don't know, we're able to pull it to the day of.
[0:07:18] BW: The note card is almost like keywords. Literally notes saying based on almost reminders of like, "Hey, this is how you want to fence against this individual. And this is kind of what we as a team identified as an opportunity there to gain an edge." Is that how you would describe it?
[0:07:37] LK: Yeah. It's a combination of specific tactical words and advice. But, also, a lot of it is emotional. For instance, if I fenced this fencer and they feel comfortable against me and I'm stressed, here are some words to help pull me out a potential funk or a stressful moment. That really resonate with me. And I think that just shows how well we know each other and how the details were really important to us.
[0:08:12] BW: When you're doing the video analysis, do you go all the way back to Worlds in Milan when you had that disappointing fourth-place team finish? And talking to you and your teammates, I know that that's something that is there in the back of your mind. Do you go all the way back that far use that as motivation? Or you're like, "Hey, that happened. And we're focused on Paris?"
[0:08:35] LK: Sometimes we're going back even farther if like someone on a team's been, let's say, injured or they weren't fencing well and we just can't find anything. Sometimes we really have to rack the records. But we don't only focus on losses when we're doing our homework. We sometimes know we need a little confidence builder. And we need to go back to a time when we're fencing in amazing. And then we need other people in the group to hype us up and be like, "Look what you did there. You can do that again." But we spent a lot of time on that loss in Milan. And I feel like it keeps us hungry. It's healthy to have a good balance of both.
[0:09:18] BW: Yeah. Completely. Okay. Quarterfinals against China. Obviously, you won 45-37. Looking back at that Team USA trailing 12 to 15. And then you go in on an 8-2 run. And then we have the lead. I'm saying we because I feel like I was cheering you guys on. Team USA has the lead for good at that point. When you come in trailing, obviously you've got some ground to make up. Do you like that extra pressure? People saying, "Lee, we need you to go in and kind of dominate here." What's in your head at that point?
[0:09:54] LK: Oh, man. I love it and I hate it. I would say one of my fencing personality traits is I – usually, sometimes just happens. A lot of points happen in a short amount of time. And my team trusts if I can get the momentum, I can come out on top. There have been like a few different scenarios based off our opponents where we're maybe someone else don't feel the pressure to make it to the 15 or the 20 mark. So that I can have like a chance to feel it and then maybe try to grab that advantage.
[0:10:41] BW: Yeah. That's really interesting. I know that the cliche in fencing is one touch at a time. But in a leg like that, are you actually thinking, "Okay. We have 12. And my goal is 20. I'm going to get eight touches here before my opponent can get to that 20." Are you actually thinking that? Or are you truly able to just lock in and focus on one touch at a time?
[0:11:03] LK: More one touch at a time. But based off past experience, I know I can do it. I have the confidence. Also, there have been situations where people hoped I made up that ground and I didn't. And I don't feel like anyone would ever be upset or then be like, "All right. Well, now she can't do that." I don't know. Even if I really want it, I don't feel like a crushing pressure, which, I don't know, I give credit to the coaches and to my teammates for helping me have that.
[0:11:37] BW: Yeah. For sure. China, you win that. And you know, "Okay. We're going to be fencing against Canada." Which was kind of a surprise. If someone were to just have looked at that bracket and looked at the rankings and the history there, they would have expected a USA-France matchup. When did you realize that Canada was pulling off that upset? Was it at the end of your match against China? Or did you have a sense that like, "This place is too quiet. France must be struggling right now."
[0:12:08] LK: If my memory serves me correctly, we had finished our bout with China and they might have ushered us off. We were not on the field of play watching. But I'm pretty sure France might have been leading going into their ninth bout. And Eleanor pulled out the win, which was surprising, not surprising. Because Canada always gives people trouble in their fighters and very talented. And France also had a lot of injuries and other obstacles this year. We were overall happy. We're excited to fence Canada. But I think we could have taken either team.
[0:12:48] BW: Totally. And Canada, in this case, is a team that you probably fenced against more than any other country because of the zonals and consistently seeing them every year in the finals there basically. The prep in between the two. A couple hours. What's happening at that point? You know your opponent. You also know your bodies and whether you need to rest, fuel, whatever. What happens in that interval?
[0:13:12] LK: Yeah. Similar to China, at some point, we had our strategy breakdown. I would say based off a lifetime events in World Cups and team events that the biggest reason that we don't have a good bout is because we don't eat enough and we don't warm up well. And so, basically, right after we finish our bout with China, we figure out the new timing we're like, "Okay, meet you all back here fully dressed. And we're going to start hitting each other again." And it sounds like an obvious thing. But you have to take into account you have people of different ages on the team. You have people with different preferences. Finding a symbiotic formula took a while. But, yes, we warmed up really hard again. We ate a lot of food. Also, anticipating. We had another bout. Win or lose after that.
[0:14:12] BW: Yeah. Canada. As if that 8 to 2 leg wasn't enough, you pulled off a 13-4. I mean, that's just something you don't see at the Olympics. It's crazy. What do you remember about that leg specifically? Were you counting in your head? Like, "Oh, my gosh. I'm in double digits at this point. We're looking really good." Or what's happening?
[0:14:34] LK: Yeah. Compared to the first bout, I feel like I was a little bit more in my head for that one because we had literally just fenced them at zonals in June. And so, in team bouts, there's two different number combinations you can get. One, two, or three. Four, five, or six. And we happen to get the same number combination and we all have the same order. It was like basically a repeat matchup from two months before. And the same situation happened.
Lauren and Jessica fenced each other all the time. And Jessica had the upper hand for that bout. And then Jackie fences Eleanor. And we're in the same situation. And I was like, "Oh, my God." Like –
[0:15:24] BW: Here we go again.
[0:15:25] LK: She's going to be ready for me now. She's not going to possibly let the same momentum hit her like a train. And she's so talented, Lucia. And I think it was like the Olympic nerves. And I think this is where like my experience comes into play where I think I can do like this is – I have to give it my all. And I can't let myself stand in the way. I think she has like 10 Olympic games left in her. And this is her first one. And so, I think I was able to collect myself a little bit more. But I was freaking out a little bit because I knew that was probably like our only chance to have a big, I don't know, moment to gain comfort.
[0:16:13] BW: Yeah. You have to capitalize on those moments. The order is fascinating to me because someone who doesn't really maybe think too closely about the strategy would be like, "Oh, Lee Kiefer, anchor. She's going to be the anchor position." But you were in the setup position, I guess you could call it. The eighth leg each in all three of the matches. How do you feel about the order that Ralf chose and being in that position knowing that once you're done with that eighth leg, it's out of your hands?
[0:16:45] LK: Yeah. I started my team career when I was, I don't know, 15 or 16. And, actually, I was in that position for many years. And then they tried being the anchor for many years. And so, then once we had this team – Lauren loves being the anchor. She thrives off that. And I was like, "I love that for you." And I also am perfectly fine. Because the setup is like another small like runway strip. Either you have to buckle down and let nothing happen. Or you can just be like, "Well, the other person has no chance of – I don't give them a little bit more."
[0:17:28] BW: Yeah. Yeah.
[0:17:30] LK: And so, it's a comfortable spot for me. Yeah, I think we knew after practicing the past few years, it's like Lauren and Maia are just like very calm, cool, collected. And the ride in that. And so, I was like, "I'm here. Here in the setup. So happy here."
[0:17:48] BW: And we talked about the tears that you and Jackie and others after the Canada match. What was that feeling knowing that a medal was guaranteed? What's going through your head at that point?
[0:18:01] LK: Yeah. Everyone wants to qualify for the Olympics. And then it's everyone's dream to get a medal. And when you are truly contenders for a medal, like you podium at a World Cup, you can taste it and you know that, I don't know, you've put it all together before. And I think it makes it hurt a lot more when you don't do that. And Jackie had the same experience from Tokyo. Yeah, our past experience definitely gave us that appreciation. We wanted it. But we didn't fully expect it. Nothing is a given at the Olympics. But Lauren and Maia, look at them showing up at like 2021 being like, "Medals."
[0:18:54] BW: Right. Yeah. Seriously. That's something that Jackie actually said. She's like, "You guys don't know what it was like to struggle a little bit." It's a new era for Team USA Women's foil. Right? Yeah. It's completely different perspectives. Okay. There's a longer break now after Canada before Italy. And I'm sure you guys just ate all kinds of very healthy food. Right?
[0:19:18] LK: You saw nothing.
[0:19:20] BW: Yes. What were you doing during that extended period? Because it's not one of these where you're going to be fencing again in an hour and you can't do like a full reset.
[0:19:31] LK: Yes. A question that I gave you to ask me. I'm going to ask myself. The question was when did I think that we had a good chance of winning? As we've discussed, I'm a very like touch by touch person. But you can like feel energy. If people are relaxed or excited. And in between our bouts when we're doing our fuel, rest, refocus. During the fuel part, Maia wanted to play this game called Wavelength. And it's kind of – it's a silly game. I don't need to explain the rules. But it's kind of a game of like how well you know each other. And it just makes everyone laugh. We were playing this while we were in McDonald's.
[0:20:25] BW: As one does in France. Right?
[0:20:26] LK: As everyone does before Olympic finals. So common. We were playing this for half an hour and we're in this like big dining area. The woman's foil team is there. Ralf, Brian, Garrick. And then 20 feet away is like the whole Italian team.
[0:20:44] BW: I was wondering if they were within eye range of you. Okay.
[0:20:48] LK: Yeah. And while we're sitting there, we're just like dying laughing and looking stupid Americans eating our McDonald's. And I feel like, at that point, we've had a great day. And we're there as a team. And I feel like, I don't know, we were just loving our Olympic experience. And I'm not going to say it did. But it might have distracted or gotten into our opponent's head just a little bit.
[0:21:18] BW: What were they doing? Do you remember? Were they playing games, and laughing, and having a great bonding moment?
[0:21:27] LK: They were a little bit more calm and subdued. I think they were doing some last minute studying, some video analysis on their phones.
[0:21:37] BW: Cramming for the test. Right?
[0:21:39] LK: They were cramming for the test. And it kind of showed.
[0:21:43] BW: Yeah. Oh my gosh. That is so interesting. I did not know. I knew about the McDonald's. But I did not know that they were – that your opponents were right there. Which, in sports, you don't usually see that. It's like separate locker rooms. Everybody's doing their own thing. And then you meet on the playing surface. And in this case, you met at the top of this grand staircase, which you had obviously walked down before in the individual event. But this is a great opportunity to just talk about the majesty of the moment I guess you could call it. What was that like, especially with three of your teammates there with you?
[0:22:17] LK: Oh, man. I would say part of me felt some heart palpitations. It's so beautiful. You realize like, "Oh, this is like the final moment of the Olympics for me. Three, four years coming to a close." But then at the same time, I think some of us felt this way, like we feel so grateful to be there. And you kind of just like soak in that energy and feel like hyped. Like, "Oh, my God. I see my sibling in this stand." They are people who are just loving fencing. And you're like, "Let's do this. This is the time."
[0:22:57] BW: Put on a show for them. I asked Ralf. When I've talked to him about that day, I'm like, "Yeah. And you guys were underdogs against Italy." And he was like, "Whoa. No. Actually, we had beaten them three straight times at various stages. And, also, if you look at the rankings of the four on each team –" and he showed me this sheet that he had put together, of if you average the four rankings of the four athletes, it actually was equal down to the decimal point. And so, this was the closest matchup. This is what everybody wanted to see who had bought tickets for the women's foil team event that day was US-Italy. See your siblings and friends in the stands and then lock in. What's the mindset? What are you thinking going in?
[0:23:46] LK: Yeah. I guess once you soak it in, then you walk through the call room. You walk onto the stage. You do your salute. And then who's the first person to go in that bout? It was –
[0:24:01] BW: That is a good question.
[0:24:03] LK: I think it was Lauren. Yeah. What does it say? It's been like a second. And it was so emotional that the details are – yeah. I should know this.
[0:24:13] BW: You know, let's bring that up.
[0:24:15] LK: Bring it up.
[0:24:15] BW: Here we go. It says Italy versus the United States of America. Okay. It's you versus Errigo in the first leg. 5-4. Then Lauren goes in 5-1 against Favaretto. And so, you've got a 10-5 lead at that point. And then Jackie against Volpi. And then you come back in against Favaretto. 4-3. Then Maia makes her debut, right? Her Olympic debut. And 6-4 against Errigo.
I mean, really the lead was pretty consistent throughout. The team didn't call on you to have another one of your 9-13, however many touch legs. Just go in and get five touches. That was kind of the game plan for you. And then you against Volpi leave Lauren with a 40 to 32 lead. But, of course, it's against Errigo. And anything can happen. Let's just talk about that. 40 to 32. You sit down. Or maybe stand up. What are you thinking at that point? It's in the bag. I'm still really nervous. What's going on?
[0:25:24] LK: Yeah. I guess one thing to note about the Italian team versus the other teams, I am of the same generation of most of them. Palumbo and I are the same age. I have been fencing Volpi since Cadet Worlds. Errigo, I've fenced her for over a decade now. Favaretto is kind of new. I feel like the feeling is kind of different because they are so used to fencing me. I think it's harder to have a big comeback. Because not only have they studied me. But they've literally practiced what they want to do over and over again for a decade.
And so, I really rely on my teammates to step up their game and surprise them and make them uncomfortable. But I would say similar to me, especially Errigo and Volpi, they can have really big runs once they get that momentum. Everything was just perfectly executed. And so, because I have been on the receiving end of that, I was very nervous fencing Volpi. But I also felt if I didn't give her a chance to become comfortable – and I kept moving. I was like a little bit more patient than sometimes I am, she would kind of face the frustration of the Olympic pressure and the necessity of scoring a lot.
[0:27:04] BW: Yeah. Because that leg started 35-26. And so, she's going to be really going for maybe not making up all the ground. But reducing that margin. And in the end, she was only able to reduce the deficit by a single touch. Mission accomplished. Right?
[0:27:19] LK: Mission accomplished.
[0:27:20] BW: Yeah. That's perfect. And so, the setup looked good. Went well. And then Lauren goes out there and gets it done. I mean, was it not until the 45th touch that you allowed the emotions to come in and the excitement? Or are you like, "Okay, at 44, 43, this isn't really happening?"
[0:27:43] LK: I'm more of a 44-type of gal because I think it's very rare to achieve perfection and not have – your tip might go off. Or you just like barely miss or something. 44, I'm like, "We got this." It's too hard to have perfection at that point. Yeah, Lauren, she was ready for it. And you could tell, she was having fun doing her stuff. And we've seen it work magic before.
[0:28:12] BW: Yeah. It truly was. And then you run out there. We've all seen the video and the photos. Just that's going to be the iconic USA fencing image for a long time. I mean, this was like history being made. You got the American flags. Your coaches are there. Everybody's gathered on the strip. Tell me about the emotion of that moment. And, also, where your eyes are going. Are you looking out there for Garrick and, for family, and friends? Or is it like the lights? You can't see any of that? What's it like being out there?
[0:28:49] LK: Oh, yeah. I would say it's just very special having a celebration with people who have gone through the journey with you and then just having that shared experience. And so, my first thing is like I was just so happy to celebrate with my teammates. Yeah, it felt so good. I liked seeing their faces, the varying surprise look or just like pure joy. A little bit of confusion. Yeah. And then you want to branch out. Look at our family's freaking out. Well, before that, all of our coaches and our sig others who are coaches too. Yes. Everyone. Just trying to bottle it up.
[0:29:39] BW: Right. Everybody just trying to like find each other in the chaos of that moment. And then the medal ceremony that follows. You've got – or I guess they call it the victory ceremony. You've got the victory ceremony, and then the media interviews, and the press conference. And then doping control. And then, finally, after all that, you're able to have a reunion with family and an official reunion. What do you remember about that moment when you've got the Olympic gold around your neck and see those who mean so much to you?
[0:30:12] LK: Yeah. We met up at the US Fencing Airbnb to see –
[0:30:17] BW: Oh. You didn't see them until then? You didn't see them at the venue.
[0:30:21] LK: I saw them for like half a second. We didn't even get to talk about it. They were just like pushing us to go wait somewhere else. I was like, "Why? Why?" Yeah. The first time we really got to see our loved ones was at the Airbnb. And first description, it was like hot and slimy. Everyone had like already been celebrating, so happy, before we got there. And then it was just so sweet hearing Ralf give his toast. And then even there's like random people who were there from my youth fencing days who just love fencing, love the Olympics. We're all still intertwined and connected. It's like, "You were here?" They're like, "Yes. We just watched you guys win." And things like that are just so special. Those little surprising moments.
[0:31:15] BW: I love that. And the celebration continued that night and then the next day. And then even when you guys came back to New York to do a victory tour. The attention on the sport of fencing, on women's foil, on the four of you. I mean, people who have been following the sport for their entire lives tell us that it's like the most they've ever seen. The most buzz. Which, yeah, we love that. How exhausting was that just going around answering the same questions and being on The Today Show, and then Sesame Street, and then back in New York on Watch What Happens Live and CBS, and all these different things? Did you feel like tired or just honored? Or what was the emotion there?
[0:31:58] LK: Well, it was really cool for fencing to have the spotlight. One of the reasons it did was because you're so good at your job, Bryan. And you helped us – I don't know. You helped give fencing and us –
[0:32:10] BW: No. It was a team effort.
[0:32:12] LK: It was. But, still, it takes a freaking group to allow this to happen. Thank you. It was all the things above, like you said. It was a way to help us process and relive the glory. But it was also – it's tiring. It's like there's so much energy surrounding the Olympics from when you get there. And we got there a week before we fenced. After a full month of going 110%, I think it was after the media tour, it was time to just crash.
[0:32:48] BW: Yes. Yes. And then did you get to enjoy some of the Olympics? I mean, people who follow you on social media saw that you got to go to some other sports after your media obligations were complete. What was the rest of the Paris experience like for you?
[0:33:03] LK: Yeah. As athletes, we were able to like enter a lottery to get one free ticket per day to other events. Most of the time, I was with like the other foilists. But we saw basketball, volleyball. I got tickets to climbing, which I absolutely adore.
[0:33:25] BW: Yeah. That's wild. Right?
[0:33:27] LK: It's so cool. Yeah, we loitered in like the athlete lobby lounge area at the bottom of our dorm. We're were able to like meet other people who are still in the midst of competing. Celebrate more at Team USA house. I feel compared to other games I've been to, there were just so many things to do at all times. Yeah. I have a diary. Because so much happened at all times that like I was going to start to mush them together or forget. Yes. Pictures and diary. Can't forget anything.
[0:34:11] BW: That's perfect. Big picture now. Three-time gold medalist. What do you see as your obligation to the sport of fencing? Because everybody wants a piece of Lee Kiefer. They want you to come to their club. They want you to talk to their fencer. But you're a human being who has a busy life. But what is kind of your – in your mind, what is your obligation to serve as this ambassador for the sport now that you have three gold medals to your name?
[0:34:46] LK: Yeah. I think my most valuable role is to be a role model to younger female athletes. I think I want to healthily help them combat some of the pressures they're bound to experience. And just growing their confidence and love for the sport, it seems obvious. But we live in a world where it's just crazy. People are talking about college by the time they're 10 years old. And I think kind of just trying to strip that back and find joy in the fencing and the community is one of the goals.
[0:35:30] BW: I really like that. I think, yeah, you've already done so much work. And that's just another great message to put out there. We focused during this conversation on all that happened on August 1st and in the days immediately after. But how about the months after? What have you been up to in the last – as we're recording this, it's been about 3 months since that historic day that we're talking about.
[0:35:56] LK: Yes. I got surgery for my wrist a month after the game. I have been doing PT and resting. And, also, trying to figure out what's next.
[0:36:12] BW: Recovery going well then?
[0:36:13] LK: Yes. It's going great. But, also, shout out to all the sports med team who got me through a whole freaking year. And it was an amazing year and ended on a high with Paris. Thank you.
[0:36:27] BW: Yeah. I remember people saw you in a brace or whatever you call it before. And they were like, "Wait. Everything okay? Everything okay?" But the whole time, you were fencing with this issue injury. And, obviously, you overcame it. And it didn't affect your game out there. But I imagine it was painful. Were you feeling pain out there? Or were you able to mitigate that during the competition?
[0:36:53] LK: Yeah. There was about a month period early in the year where I just didn't fence and it really helped heal. But I would say was a lot more just emotionally exhausting managing it. I feel like all the athletes have really high pain tolerance. And everyone is constantly trying to manage some different injury. We're just like in that way all on an even playing field.
[0:37:21] BW: True. All the fencers are – something hurts on all the fencers. That I have heard this.
[0:37:27] LK: Multiple things on everyone. Yes.
[0:37:31] BW: I love that even playing field. Okay. Well, thank you so much for taking the time today. And congratulations again. And it's just been inspiring watching you fence. And, yeah, I mean, you were already like in the USA fencing history books. And now, another chapter added to that. Congrats. That's amazing. And good luck in whatever comes next.
[0:37:54] LK: Thanks, Bryan. Thanks for helping us relieve. And I can't wait to hear everyone else's episode.
[0:38:00] LK: Totally. Yeah. Thank you again.
[OUTRO]
[0:38:03] BW: Thanks for listening to First to 15, the official podcast of USA fencing. We'll be back with our next conversation in a couple of weeks. In the meantime, you can stay up-to-date on all the latest fencing news by following us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. And if you like this podcast, please help us grow and reach more people by leaving us a rating or review. Until next time, I'm Bryan Wendell. And I hope to see you real soon out on the strip. Bye.
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