fencing
Fencing is a group of three related combat sports. The three disciplines in modern fencing are the foil, the épée, and the sabre (also ''saber''); winning points are made through the weapon's contact with an opponent. A fourth discipline, s ...
events on the
fencing at the 1956 Summer Olympics
At the 1956 Summer Olympics, seven fencing
Fencing is a group of three related combat sports. The three disciplines in modern fencing are the foil, the épée, and the sabre (also ''saber''); winning points are made through the weapon's co ...
programme. It was the twelfth appearance of the event. The competition was held on 26 November 1956. 32 fencers from 14 nations competed. Nations had been limited to three fencers each since 1928. The event was won by Christian d'Oriola of France, the second man to successfully defend an Olympic title in the foil and second man to win three medals in the event (he had a silver medal in 1948 along with gold in 1952). It was France's third consecutive and seventh overall victory in the event. As in 1952, the next two spots were taken by Italians, this time Giancarlo Bergamini and
Antonio Spallino
Antonio Spallino (1 April 1925 – 27 September 2017) was an Italian fencer. He won a gold, silver and bronze medal at two Olympic Games. Spallino was President of Panathlon International from 1988 to 1996. He was mayor of Como
Como (, ; ...
.
Background
This was the 12th appearance of the event, which has been held at every Summer Olympics except 1908 (when there was a foil display only rather than a medal event). Four of the nine finalists from 1952 returned: gold medalist (and 1948 silver medalist) Christian d'Oriola of France, silver medalist Edoardo Mangiarotti of Italy, fourth-place finisher Jacques Lataste of France, and eighth-plae finisher Giancarlo Bergamini of Italy. Once again, the French and Italian teams were favored. D'Oriola had added two more world championships since the Helsinki Games and come in second at the third, behind
József Gyuricza
József Gyuricza (16 January 1934 – 11 March 2020) was a Hungarian fencer.foil rules were used, including that touches had to be made with the tip of the foil, the target area was limited to the torso, and priority determined the winner of double touches.Official Report, p. 439.
* Quarterfinals: There were 4 pools of 8 fencers each. The top 4 fencers in each quarterfinal advanced to the semifinals.
* Semifinals: There were 2 pools of 8 fencers each. The top 4 fencers in each semifinal advanced to the final.
* Final: The final pool had 8 fencers.
Schedule
All times are
Australian Eastern Standard Time
Australia uses three main time zones: Australian Western Standard Time (AWST; UTC+08:00), Australian Central Standard Time (ACST; UTC+09:30), and Australian Eastern Standard Time (AEST; UTC+10:00). Time is regulated by the individual state ...
The top 4 fencers in each pool advanced to the semifinals.
Quarterfinal 1
Quarterfinal 2
Stratmann won the barrage vs. Mangiarotti, 5–4.
Quarterfinal 3
Delaunois beat Paul, who beat Bergamini, who beat Delaunois, in the barrage, all at 5–4; touches against in the main pool were used to break the tie.
Quarterfinal 4
Semifinals
The top 4 fencers in each pool advanced to the final.
Semifinal 1
Semifinal 2
The three-way barrage for 3rd and 4th places resulted in Stratmann losing twice to be eliminated. Gyuricza and Jay did not face each other in the barrage, with their nominal 3rd and 4th place ranks (not relevant to advancement) determined on touches against in the main pool.
Final
The two Italian fencers faced off in a barrage to determine silver and bronze medals. Bergamini won, 5–4 (he had also beaten Spallino by that score in the main pool).