FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Misha Mokretsov, info.nyfa@gmail.com, (347) 741-1343
BROOKLYN FENCER JACLYN KHROL TOP 8 IN WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP, #13 IN WORLD
Brooklyn, NY (April 30, 2021) – Jaclyn Khrol (Bensonhurst, Midwood High School) competed for the first time in the Junior (under-20) World Championship in Cairo, Egypt earlier this month, and rose to 13th in the world after her top 8 result in the most prominent international competition in the sport of fencing, after the Olympic Games.
Khrol has been fencing since she was nine years old and has had consistent success from the age of 10, with countless medals at North American Cups, Summer Nationals, and Junior Olympics, as well as World Cups. But in 2019, Khrol was crushed when she was just one spot away from making the National Team. “It was very hard to keep her inspired and motivated to start training again,” said her coach, Misha Mokretsov (New York Fencing Academy, Brooklyn, NY). “Jackie was so successful from a young age, that in her mind, she would make the National Team. But when it didn’t happen, it was very shocking for her.” The next year, the story repeated and again she was one spot short. “That was so disappointing,” said Khrol, “plus COVID started and I wasn’t able to train for 8 months.” That is an extremely long time to stop training for an athlete of her level. As soon as it was allowed, they started training again and it became obvious that she had a lot of work to do to get back in shape to the level needed for major events.
Then the good news came. Khrol recalled, “I was thrilled to learn that the World Championships were happening and I finally got selected for the team!” They had a very short time to prepare, but with a sharp training plan and Khrol’s experience, the student and coach created the best momentum they could for the 2021 World Championships.
“Jackie was a little uncomfortable going to her dream event after such a long break, but what she lacked in training, we knew she could cover with her mental game, experience and strategic thinking,” said coach Mokretsov.
The day of the competition, Khrol carried out her routine and looked ready. She started off winning her first bout confidently. For the second bout, Khrol began ahead 4-1 and finished 5-3. Next, against Carmen Andrea Correa Santa from Colombia, Khrol started winning 2-0 and later in the bout received 2 touches against her before realizing that her weapon wasn’t working. That threw off Khrol’s focus and she lost the bout in priority 2-3.
Even though she tried to get back in the zone, Khrol was still affected by the last bout and lost the next two bouts to athletes from Poland and Spain. Finally, Khrol managed to regain her confidence and won one more bout, finishing the pool round at 3-3. She ranked 58th out of 113 fencers.
In direct elimination, Khrol dominated her first bout against Kamilia Abdyl-Khamitova from Kyrgyzstan, even though it ended with a close 15-13 score. Next, Khrol faced an extremely hard opponent, Kinga Zgryzniak from Poland, who ranked 7th after pools and didn’t lose a single pool bout. Khrol was behind through most of the bout, but near the end with 18 seconds left and 2 points behind, she scored a touch and got to 11-12. Mokretsov recalled, “She had 5 seconds left to catch up and managed to do it when the clock had only .007 seconds remaining! Then in overtime, she won! That was an amazing bout and it put Jackie in a strong mindset for the next bout.”
To make top 16, Khrol fenced Olexandra Lazarenko from Ukraine and built a comfortable lead from the beginning, finishing 13-8. For top 8, Khrol faced a strong athlete from Egypt, Rodaina Gaafar. Again, Khrol was leading the whole bout and never let the opponent doubt her advantage. The final score was 15-12. To make top 4, Khrol had to face another Ukrainian athlete, Anastasiia Zelentsova. Khrol started ahead and kept it up until the last 15 seconds where she had a 3 point lead. At this point. Khrol started fencing too carefully and tried to save the lead rather than fence actively to keep the pressure on the opponent. Zelentsova fought up to a 1 point deficit with 5 seconds left. The plan was to retreat and pretend to defend but instead attack when the distance got close. But under the pressure, Khrol tried defense and Zelentsova evened up the score and won in priority. Khrol said, “I’m happy I made top 8 in my first junior world championship and moved up to 13th in world rankings! I have two more years in juniors and I’m seriously focused on beating this result!”
New York Fencing Academy (NYFA) was founded in 2010 in Brooklyn, NY by owner and head coach Misha Mokretsov. In 2018, NYFA opened their second location in Port Washington, Long Island, NY. NYFA is a center for excellence in epee, with one of the strongest competitive epee programs in the country. NYFA has produced National and World Champions, and has members on the USA and French national teams. NYFA provides private lessons, group classes, after school programs, and camps for students of all ages and all levels, beginners to advanced. Visit http://www.fencenyfa.com for more info.
###
Contact: Misha Mokretsov, , cell phone: (347) 741-1343
Company: New York Fencing Academy
Brooklyn: 2896 W 12th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11224, club phone: (718) 996-0426
Long Island: 8 Haven Avenue, Port Washington, NY 11050, club phone: (516) 472-7042
NEW YORK FENCING ACADEMY 