Zoltán Ozoray Schenker

Zoltán Ozoray Schenker (October 13, 1880 – August 25, 1966) was a Hungarian sabre and foil fencer.

Fencing career

Born in Váradszentmárton, Hungary, in the 1910s and 1920s Schenker was one of Hungary's top fencers when the country was known as the best fencing nation in the world.

Olympics

He appeared in three Olympiads, winning 3 medals.

Schenker first competed at the 1912 Stockholm Games, and took the gold medal in the team sabre event. In individual sabre, he reached the finals and finished in 4th place after winning 4 of 7 matches. Schenker also fenced in the individual foil competition, and won both his 1st- and 2nd-round pools, but was eliminated in the semifinals. Schenker returned to the Olympics at the 1924 Paris Games, and fenced in 4 events. He won 2 medals in team competitions. In team foil, the Hungarian team easily captured the bronze medal. In the team sabre, Schenker and Hungary won the silver medal (they lost to Italy for the gold). In the individual foil, Schenker was eliminated in his 1st-round. In the individual sabre, his stronger weapon, Schenker advanced to the finals and finished 4th overall. In the final pool, he won 4 of 7 matches, but lost to bronze medalist (and fellow Hungarian) Janos Garay.

Schenker's final Olympiad was the Amsterdam Games in 1928. Competing only in individual foil, Schenker advanced to the semifinals, where he was eliminated.

Writing

Schenker was also a well-known author on fencing. He wrote: "... a fencer must catch the moment when his opponent it totally or partially incapable of an action ... such favorable moments occur when the opponent executes badly thought-out purposeless blade movements or footwork, when his attention is distracted and his readiness for action is diminished. Such moments occur also when the opponent is, for example, preoccupied with planning the bout or is distressed by its unsuccessful course." [http://www.jewsinsports.org/Olympics.asp?sport=olympics&ID=199] He died in Budapest.

Link

* [http://www.databaseolympics.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=SCHENZOL01 Olympic medals]
* [http://www.jewsinsports.org/Olympics.asp?sport=olympics&ID=199 Jews in Sports bio]