Christian d'Oriola

Christian d'Oriola

Personal information
Born	3 October 1928(1928-10-03) Perpignan, France
Died	30 October 2007(2007-10-30) (aged 79) Nîmes, France
Sport
Sport	Fencing
Medal record Mens' fencing Competitor for  France Olympic Games[1] Gold 1948 London Team foil Gold 1952 Helsinki Individual foil Gold 1952 Helsinki Team foil Gold 1956 Melbourne Individual foil Silver 1948 London Individual foil Silver 1956 Melbourne Team foil World Championships Gold Lisbon 1947 Individual foil Gold Lisbon 1947 Team foil Gold Cairo 1949 Individual foil Gold Stockholm 1951 Team foil Gold Brussels 1953 Individual foil Gold Brussels 1953 Team foil Gold Luxembourg 1954 Individual foil Gold Philadelphia 1958 Team foil Silver Cairo 1949 Team foil Silver Luxembourg 1954 Team foil Silver Rome 1955 Individual foil

Christian D'Oriola (October 3, 1928 – October 29, 2007) was a noted French foil fencer named "Fencer of the 20th Century" by the FIE, the International Fencing Federation, in 2001.

Born in Perpignan, France, he was World Champion four times (1947, 1949, 1953, and 1954), and twice Olympic Champion (1952, 1956) in the foil individual events. At the 1948 Olympics, at the age of 19, he won a team gold medal and an individual silver medal in foil. At the 1952 Olympics he won gold medals in both the team and individual foil competitions, winning all ten bouts in the team events. In 1956, at the Olympics he again won a gold medal in individual foil, while winning a silver medal in team foil. He was also four time team world champion (1948, 1952, 1953, 1954). Aged 42 he became French champion in the team sabre event in 1970. He is a first cousin of the equestrian Pierre Jonquères d'Oriola. In 1972, he was awarded the French Legion of Honor.

In 2001, the FIE listed the qualities that made Christian d'Oriola "Fencer of the 20th Century": "The speed of his hand, his prodigious technique, his light but devastatingly quick footwork, his instantaneous reactions, his inventiveness and his ability to adapt perfectly from "academic" (non-electric) to electric foil—all this means that Christian d’Oriola remains a model for his successors past and present."

Noting the aesthetic component of his fencing, the FIE stated: "Christian d’Oriola was fencing perfection personified as no-one else has ever been…"

Notes

1. "Highlights Of The Week, 29 October 2007", International Olympic Committee News: http://www.olympic.org/uk/news/olympic_news/week_uk.asp?weekDate=10/29/2007 Retrieved 10 Nov 2007

2. Safra, Jean-Marie. (Revue trimestrielle N°38, 2001 Decembre). "The world championships in Nimes. The day of glory for the first champions of the third millennium." International Fencing, Official Publication of the FIE, International Federation of Fencing.

3. Safra, Jean-Marie. (Revue trimestrielle N°38, 2001 Decembre). "The world championships in Nimes. The day of glory for the first champions of the third millennium." International Fencing, Official Publication of the FIE, International Federation of Fencing.

Sources

• Cohen, Richard (2002). By the Sword. New York: Random House. ISBN 0-375-50417-6. 

References

1. ^ "Christian d'Oriola Olympic Results". sports-reference.com. http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/do/christian-doriola-1.html. Retrieved 2010-06-14. 

External links

• Olympic medals
• Britannica
• Come4News
• La Tribune
• 20 Minutes
• www.alaux-fencingmaster.com

Persondata
Name	Oriola, Christian d'
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	3 October 1928
Place of birth	Perpignan, France
Date of death	30 October 2007
Place of death	Nîmes, France