Ace Fencer Bhavani Devi Bags Gold at the Commonwealth Championships 2022

Indian fencer Bhavani Devi clinched the gold medal at the Commonwealth Fencing Championships 2022 held in London. She got past Australia’s Veronika Vasileva by 15-10 to win the crown in the senior women’s sabre individual category. She previously won the title in 2019 in Canberra, Australia in the same category.

In her first round of the championships, she was given a bye. She then faced Alexandra David in the subsequent round. The Indian fencer eventually defeated David by 15-6 to advance into the semi-finals of the event. She then encountered Scottish opponent Lucy Higham in the semis. She secured a comprehensive win against her, winning the game by 15-5. The Indian fencer had a tough final against Australia’s Veronika Vasileva. However, she overcame her formidable opponent to win the gold medal for a second time.

Bhavani created history when she qualified for the Tokyo Olympics 2020 as the first Indian fencer to become an Olympian. She booked her ticket to Tokyo after reaching the quarter-finals of the Fencing World Cup 2020 held in Hungary. She achieved qualification via the modified Official Ranking Method (AOR). In her opening match at Tokyo 2020, she got a convincing victory against Nadia Ben Azizi of Tunisia by 15-3. Her journey came to an end in the second round when she faced the fourth-seeded M Brunet of France in the round of 32. Despite playing a high-seeded opponent, she managed to put on a strong performance and lost by 15-7.

In 2004, Bhavani began to learn fencing while attending Muruga Dhanushkodi Girls’ Higher Secondary School. She used her first electronic equipment when she took part in a national-level competition. She had used only bamboo sticks beforehand. While the international players had the luxury of practising with the electric swords, Bhavani trained outside under the scorching heat of the sun. She made her representation in the nationals in 2004 in Madhya Pradesh. Since then, she started practising Fencing as a professional and received training at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Chennai. She participated in her first international competition in Turkey at the Cadet and Junior World Fencing Championship in 2007. She has won multiple medals in Commonwealth Senior and Junior fencing championships, Asian U-23, and Junior Fencing Championships