Spreading his titles over three different decades, Michael Marx claimed a record seventh Division I men's foil title Wednesday night at the U.S. Fencing Association national championships.
The top-ranked U.S. men's foil competitor and three-time Olympian, the 31- year-old Marx defeated Marc Pavese 5-4 and 5-2 in Wednesday night's foil finals at the Salt Palace Convention Center.Marx, the assistant fencing coach at Notre Dame who lives in Michigan City, Ind., now has the 1990 title to go along with similar U.S. national championships won in 1977, '79, '82, '85, '86 and '87. He was the runner-up in foil competition the past two years.
His seven foil championships is one more than the six titles garnered six- plus decades ago by Lt. G.C. Calnan, who won foil honors in 1925-28 and 1930- 31.
Pavese, an 18-year-old from Brooklyn, N.Y., is the current leader in points for the 1989-90 season in junior men's foil. He also will be competing in the Under 19 men's foil later this week.
Winner of the bronze medal was second-ranked David Littell of Philadelphia. Marty Yu, Los Altos, Calif., was fourth; Jerome DeMarque, New York, was fifth.
In preliminary competition for Thursday's Division I women's epee finals, Margo Miller, Santa Monica, Calif., defeated Veronica Morrison, Arlington, Va., for top-seed honors in the finals. Miller is currently ranked fifth in the U.S. women's epee ranking.
The Division I women's epee finals are scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Thursday, to be preceded by men's team foil competition at 5:30 p.m. Also to be contested Thursday - the sixth day of the nine-day national tournament - are Under 19 women's foil and women's sabre.
Friday's finals include women's team epee and Division II men's sabre.