Nicole Ross (born January 15, 1989) is an American foil fencer. Fencing for the Columbia Lions fencing team, she won the 2010

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

individual women's foil title, and was a three time All-American. At the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

she competed in individual women's foil, coming in 25th, while in the team event she and her teammates came in sixth. At the 2018 World Championships, she and her Team USA teammates won the

gold medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have bee ...

in the women's team foil event. She represented the United States in fencing at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo in 2021.

Early and personal life

Ross was born in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

in New York City, and was raised on the

Upper West Side The Upper West Side (UWS) is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Central Park on the east, the Hudson River on the west, West 59th Street to the south, and West 110th Street to the north. The Upper West ...

, and is Jewish."Nicole Ross; Foil Fencing,"
Team USA. Her parents are Aimee and David Ross. She graduated Columbia Grammar & Preparatory School in 2007 and then completed a B.A. in Art History from

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

in 2013. As of 2022, she is studying for her master’s in psychology at

The New School The New School is a private research university in New York City. It was founded in 1919 as The New School for Social Research with an original mission dedicated to academic freedom and intellectual inquiry and a home for progressive thinkers. ...

, and hopes to pursue a PhD in clinical psychology.

Fencing career

Ross took up fencing at the age of 9, inspired by ''

The Princess Bride The Princess Bride may refer to: * ''The Princess Bride'' (novel), 1973 fantasy romance novel by American writer William Goldman William Goldman (August 12, 1931 – November 16, 2018) was an American novelist, playwright, and screenwriter. He ...

''. She was part of the USA's gold medal-winning 2009 Junior World Championship team in Belfast. She fenced for the Columbia Lions fencing team. In 2008, 2009, and 2010, Ross was a first team All-American. She won the

individual women's foil title in 2010. In 2011, Ross had a

kidney ailment Kidney disease, or renal disease, technically referred to as nephropathy, is damage to or disease of a kidney. Nephritis is an inflammatory kidney disease and has several types according to the location of the inflammation. Inflammation can ...

, but recovered in time to make Team USA. At the

, Ross competed in the women's foil, and reached the second round where she was defeated 8–15, and came in 25th in the individual event. In the team event, she and Team USA came in sixth. Ross won silver medals at the

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

and

2016 Pan American Fencing Championships The 2016 Pan American Fencing Championships were being held at the Convention Center Vasco Nuñez de Balboa in Panama City from 21 to 26 June 2016. The event was organized by the Pan American Fencing Confederation and the National Fencing Associatio ...

, and bronze medals at the 2009 and

2017 Pan American Fencing Championships The 2017 Pan American Fencing Championships is held at the Centre Pierre-Charbonneau in Montreal from 13 to 18 June 2017. The event was organized by the Pan American Fencing Confederation and Canadian Fencing Federation. Medal summary Men's events ...

. She won a gold medal at the 2019 Pan American Games team championship. As of 2017, she credited two-time Olympian

Soren Thompson Soren Hunter Miles Sussman Thompson (born May 5, 1981) is an American épée fencer, team world champion, and two-time Olympian. He represented the United States in the 2004 Olympics in Athens, where he reached the quarterfinals and came in 7t ...

, coach Simon Gershon, and USA Fencing women’s foil coach

Buckie Leach Anthony Buckie Leach (1958 – August 14, 2021) was an American foil fencing coach and fencer. He began fencing at age 12 and coaching at age 20. A coach for over 40 years, his students have found success on both the national and international le ...

for her achievements. At the 2017 World Championships,

Lee Kiefer Lee Kiefer (born June 15, 1994) is an American right-handed foil fencer. Kiefer is a four-time NCAA champion, ten-time team Pan American champion, nine-time individual Pan American champion, and 2018 team world champion. A three-time Olympia ...

Margaret Lu Margaret Lu (born March 21, 1994) is an American fencer. Lu has participated in the World Fencing Championships several times, winning a silver medal in 2017 and a gold medal in 2018, both in the team events. She won gold medals at the Pan Amer ...

Nzingha Prescod Nzingha Prescod (born August 14, 1992) is an American foil fencer, World Champion in foil at the 2008 and 2009 Cadet World Cups, bronze medalist at the 2015 World Fencing Championships, three-time medalist at the Pan American Games, and two-t ...

, and Ross won the

silver medal A silver medal in sports and other similar areas involving competition is a medal made of, or plated with, silver awarded to the second-place finisher, or runner-up, of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc ...

in the women's team foil event. At the 2018 World Championships she and Team USA won the gold medal in team foil, and at the 2019 World Championships they won the bronze medal. In December 2019 she tore her ACL at a qualifying event. Ross nevertheless competed on the World Cup circuit in January 2020, before undergoing ACL reconstructive surgery in May 2020. She fences for the

New York Athletic Club The New York Athletic Club is a private social club and athletic club in New York state. Founded in 1868, the club has approximately 8,600 members and two facilities: the City House, located at 180 Central Park South in Manhattan, and Travers ...

, and is coached by Jimmy Moody. She has been the U.S. Fencing Senior National Team Captain since 2012. She was the head fencing coach at

Marymount School of New York Marymount School of New York is an American college preparatory, independent, Catholic day school for girls located on the Upper East Side of the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York. It was founded by Mother Marie Joseph Butler in 19 ...

in 2012-13, was an assistant coach at

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...

from 2016–18, and since 2020 has been an assistant coach at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

for the Harvard Crimson fencing team. Ross represented the United States in fencing at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo in 2021. She became the 12th fencer in Columbia University history to participate in two or more Olympic Games.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ross, Nicole American female foil fencers 1989 births Living people Olympic fencers of the United States Fencers at the 2012 Summer Olympics Jewish female foil fencers Jewish American sportspeople Pan American Games medalists in fencing Pan American Games silver medalists for the United States Pan American Games bronze medalists for the United States Sportspeople from New York City Fencers at the 2015 Pan American Games Columbia Lions fencers Medalists at the 2015 Pan American Games Columbia University alumni Fencers at the 2020 Summer Olympics 21st-century American women