The 1956 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XVI Olympiad and officially branded as Melbourne 1956, were an international multi-sport event held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, from 22 November to 8 December 1956, with the exception of the equestrian events, which were held in Stockholm, Sweden, in June 1956.
Vladimir Viktorovich Smirnov was a Soviet foil and épée fencer. He was the 1980 Olympic champion in men's foil, and the 1981 world champion in men's foil. He was killed accidentally in a bout during the 1982 World Fencing Championships in Rome, Italy.
Edoardo Mangiarotti was an Italian fencer. He won a total of 39 Olympic titles and World championships, more than any other fencer in the history of the sport. His Olympic medals include one individual gold, five team golds, five silver, and two bronze medals from 1936 to 1960, making him the most decorated Italian Olympian of all time and tied for the tenth-most decorated Olympian of all time.
MaestroGiorgio Santelli was a fencer and fencing master who was part of the Italian team that won the gold medal in Men's team sabre at the 1920 Summer Olympics and was the largest mid-20th century influence in raising the quality and popularity of fencing in the United States, and creator of one of the best-known fencing equipment manufacturers.
France competed at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan. 138 competitors, 118 men and 20 women, took part in 89 events in 14 sports.
France competed at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia and Stockholm, Sweden. 137 competitors, 119 men and 18 women, took part in 95 events in 15 sports.
Great Britain, represented by the British Olympic Association (BOA), competed at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia. British athletes have competed in every Summer Olympic Games. 189 competitors, 163 men and 26 women, took part in 108 events in 17 sports.
Italy competed at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia and Stockholm, Sweden. 129 competitors, 114 men and 15 women, took part in 76 events in 13 sports. As the country hosted the next Olympics in Rome, the flag of Italy was hoisted at the closing ceremony.
Yakov Anufrievich Rylsky was an Olympic champion and three-time world champion Russian sabre fencer who competed for the Soviet Union. He took part in three Olympic Games and won two medals in the team events.
Byron Lester Krieger was an American foil, sabre and épée fencer. Krieger represented the United States in the Olympics in 1952 in Helsinki and 1956 in Melbourne, and in the 1951 Pan American Games where he won two gold medals.
Matthias Behr is a former German foil fencer. He won a gold medal and three silvers at three Olympic Games.
Irene Camber-Corno was an Italian fencer and Olympic champion in foil competition.
Daniel Revenu was a French fencer and Olympic champion in foil competition, and medalist in four successive Olympics.
George Piller was an Olympic and world champion fencer from Hungary in the 1920s and 1930s who became an internationally respected world-class fencing master in Hungary and the United States in the 1950s.
Dániel Magay is a Hungarian former saber fencer. He is known for being part of the Hungarian team which won the gold medal at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics.
Rubén Dario Limardo Gascón is a Venezuelan left-handed épée fencer, five-time team Pan American champion, four-time individual Pan American champion, three-time Olympian, and 2012 individual Olympic champion.
Ernest George Stenson-Cooke was a British fencer.
Béla Rerrich was a Hungarian fencer. He won a silver medal in the team épée event at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne.
John Erle Fethers was an Australian fencer. He competed in six events at the 1952 Summer Olympics. He was a longstanding member and coach at the Melbourne-based VRI Fencing Club. On 10 October 2009 in recognition of a significant international fencing career, outstanding personal contribution to Australian fencing, and lasting legacy in the training and development of numerous coaches and Olympic athletes, he was inducted as a Living Legend to the VRI Hall of Fame.
Bruno Boscherie is a French fencer who took part in the 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow.
