Italy's men's épée team has captured gold at the 2026 European Fencing Championships in Antony, France, dismantling the host nation in a commanding 45-30 final that underscores the country's enduring dominance in the discipline. The victory on June 19 marks the latest chapter in a remarkable tournament run that saw Italy climb to the top of the épée podium once again—and reinforces the squad's status as Europe's elite in a sport where centimeters and split-seconds separate triumph from defeat.
Why This Matters
• Double gold: Simone Mencarelli won both individual and team épée gold at the same championship, a rare feat at European level.
• Sustained excellence: The win follows silver at the 2024 Europeans and positions Italy as the historic leader in the all-time European fencing medal table.
• Revenge narrative: The team avenged last year's final loss to France by defeating them on home soil in front of a capacity French crowd.
Decisive Final Performance
The Italian quartet—Davide Di Veroli, Matteo Galassi, Simone Mencarelli, and Andrea Santarelli—controlled every phase of Thursday's final at the Parc des Sports in Antony, a suburb south of Paris. From the opening exchanges, the Azzurri built a lead that France could never claw back, expanding their margin through precision bouts and exploiting weaknesses in the French rotation.
By the midpoint, Italy had opened a double-digit gap, and the final score of 45-30 reflected a performance that blended tactical discipline with aggressive tempo. The margin was the widest in any men's team épée final at the Europeans since 2019, signaling not just victory but superiority.
Head coach Diego Confalonieri described the atmosphere as "electric but controlled," crediting his athletes with staying mentally anchored despite the hostile crowd. The win handed Italy its third consecutive team épée medal at the European Championships—gold in 2022, silver in 2024, and now gold again.
Italy's Medal Haul in Antony
The team gold capped a stellar week for Italian fencing at the 2026 Europeans, which run from June 16 to 21. As of June 20, Italy has secured 3 gold, 1 silver, and 2 bronze medals, placing the squad second in the overall table behind France.
Beyond the team épée triumph, Simone Mencarelli claimed individual gold in men's épée earlier in the competition, defeating Israel's Alon Sarid in the final to capture his first senior European individual title. The 23-year-old from Turin is now a dual European champion—individual and team—in the same tournament cycle, a distinction shared by only a handful of fencers in recent memory.
Arianna Errigo added silver in women's foil, while Tommaso Martini took bronze in men's foil. The women's sabre team—Michela Battiston, Mariella Viale, Manuela Spica, and Claudia Rotili—secured bronze by defeating Hungary in the third-place match. Italy's women's épée squad did not medal this year, a contrast to their gold in 2024, but the men more than compensated.
The Quartet: Experience Meets Youth
The team final showcased a blend of veteran savvy and emerging talent that has become the hallmark of Italian épée fencing.
Andrea Santarelli, 33, is the squad's anchor. Born in Foligno, the right-hander is a two-time Olympian (Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020) and a 2016 Olympic silver medalist in team épée. He also won world team gold in 2023 and has collected multiple European medals, making him the calming presence in high-pressure bouts.
Davide Di Veroli, 24, is the squad's left-handed weapon. Born in Rome on August 18, 2001, he was Italy's flag bearer at the 2018 Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires, where he claimed double gold in individual and team épée. He topped the under-20 World Cup rankings in 2019 and won individual European gold in 2023 in Plovdiv. A police athlete with Fiamme Oro and an economics student at Luiss University, Di Veroli is considered a future captain.
Simone Mencarelli, 23, is now the breakout star of 2026. Born in Turin on May 24, 2003, he studies physical activity sciences at Niccolò Cusano University in Rome and competes for Victoria Torino and Fiamme Oro. His double gold at these Europeans—individual and team—cements his rise from junior standout (gold at the 2018 Cadet World Championships) to senior champion.
Matteo Galassi rounds out the quartet. Details on his background remain sparse in public records, but coach Confalonieri singled him out for his standout World Cup season leading into Antony, highlighting consistency and competitive fire.
Strategic Preparation and Coaching
The road to gold began with a final training camp in Folgaria, a mountain town in Trentino, where all Italian fencing squads gathered for a pre-competition stage. The camp allowed coach Diego Confalonieri to assess fitness, fine-tune tactics, and build team cohesion in a controlled environment.
Confalonieri has long emphasized the depth and ambition of the men's épée group, describing them as "competitive and hungry" ahead of the tournament. He highlighted Di Veroli as a "talented leader" and Santarelli as the "veteran anchor," while praising Galassi and Mencarelli for their World Cup form.
Francesco Montini, head of delegation, noted a "serene and focused atmosphere" during the final training session in Antony before competition began, a mood that proved prescient.
Historical Context and European Dominance
Italy sits atop the all-time European Fencing Championships medal table, a position built over decades of sustained excellence across all weapons. In épée specifically, the men's team has been a fixture on the podium: silver in 2024, gold in 2022, and now gold again in 2026.
The 2024 edition saw the Italian women's épée team win gold, defeating Hungary 38-31 in the final, while the men took silver after falling to France. That loss motivated the 2026 squad, who reversed the script by beating France on their home turf.
At the 2024 Europeans, Italy topped the overall medal table with 5 gold, 3 silver, and 3 bronze—a total of 11 medals. The 2026 tally is still building, but the men's épée gold and Mencarelli's individual triumph anchor a strong Italian performance.
What This Means for Italian Fencing
For fans and stakeholders in Italy, the victory reinforces the country's global standing in fencing and adds to a storied legacy that includes Olympic golds (most recently the men's foil team in Tokyo 2021) and World Championship titles.
Fencing remains one of the few sports where Italy consistently punches above its weight on the international stage, delivering medals and champions with regularity. The sport enjoys robust grassroots support, elite training facilities like the Centro di Preparazione Olimpica "Giulio Onesti" in Rome, and institutional backing through the Fiamme Oro police sports group, which sponsors multiple national team athletes.
The 2026 European gold also sets the stage for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, where the men's épée team will aim to convert continental dominance into a podium finish. Santarelli is expected to compete in his third Games, while Di Veroli and Mencarelli will be entering their athletic primes.
France Falls Short at Home
For the host nation, the loss stings. France entered the final as favorites before a home crowd but was outclassed from the opening bout. French fencing has long rivaled Italy for European supremacy, and the two nations have traded épée titles for decades. The defeat on home ground will fuel the rivalry heading into future championships.
The 2026 Europeans conclude on June 21, with final medal events in foil and sabre still to come. Italy remains in contention for additional hardware, but the men's épée gold is already the centerpiece of the tournament—a statement victory that echoes across European fencing.
