The 1908 Summer Olympics were an international multi-sport event held in London, England, United Kingdom, from 27 April to 31 October 1908. The 1908 Games were originally scheduled to be held in Rome, but were relocated on financial grounds following the violent eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 1906, which claimed over 100 lives; Rome eventually hosted the Games in 1960.
At the 1904 Summer Olympics, five fencing events were contested. The third edition of the Olympic fencing program included a team event for the first time, as well as the only Olympic singlestick competition. Events for fencing professionals were eliminated. The competitions were held on September 7, 1904 and September 8, 1904.
At the 1900 Summer Olympics, seven fencing events were contested. 260 fencers from 19 nations competed. The events took place at the Tuileries Garden.
The men's foil was one of three fencing events on the Fencing at the 1896 Summer Olympics programme. It was held on the second day of competition, 7 April. Eight fencers took part, with the preliminary fencing involving a round-robin held in two groups. The first group was Pierrakos-Mavromichalis, Delaborde, Callot, and Poulos. The second was Komninos-Miliotis, Balakakis, Gravelotte, and Vouros. The two fencers that were undefeated in their groups faced each other in the final for gold and silver medals, while Pierrakos-Mavromichalis and Vouros were awarded third place. Vouros's second win came from a forfeit by Komninos-Miliotis.
The men's masters foil was one of three fencing events on the Fencing at the 1896 Summer Olympics programme. It was the only event at the Games for professional athletes and was held immediately after the amateur event on 7 April. It consisted of a single match, between Leonidas Pyrgos of Greece and Joanni Perronet of France. Pyrgos won the match, 3–1, to become the first Greek champion in the modern Olympics.
The men's foil was a fencing event held as part of the Fencing at the 1912 Summer Olympics programme. It was the fourth appearance of the event, which had not been contested in 1908. There were 94 competitors from 15 nations, a large increase from the 9 fencers who had competed in 1904. The event was won by Nedo Nadi of Italy, the first of his two victories in the event. His countryman Pietro Speciale took silver, while Richard Verderber of Austria took bronze.
The men's épée was a fencing event held as part of the Fencing at the 1912 Summer Olympics programme. It was the fourth appearance of the event, which had been introduced in 1900. The competition was held from 11 to 13 July at the Östermalm Athletic Grounds. There were 93 competitors from 15 nations. Each nation could enter up to 12 fencers. The event was won by Paul Anspach of Belgium. His countryman Philippe le Hardy took bronze. Silver went to Denmark's Ivan Joseph Martin Osiier, the only medal won by the perennial Olympian who competed in seven Games over 40 years. The medals were the first in the men's épée for both nations.
The men's foil was a competition in fencing at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. A total of 36 men from 20 nations competed in this event. Nations had been limited to three fencers each since 1928. Competition took place in the Fencing Hall at the Helliniko Olympic Complex on August 16. The event was won by Brice Guyart of France, the nation's ninth victory in the men's foil. Italy took the other two medals, with Salvatore Sanzo earning silver and Andrea Cassarà winning the bronze medal match.
The men's épée was a fencing event held as part of the fencing at the 1920 Summer Olympics programme. It was the fifth appearance of the event. A total of 80 fencers from 13 nations competed in the event, which was held from August 20 to 23, 1920. Each nation was limited to eight fencers, down from 12 in 1908 and 1912. Of the six fencing events, the only one in which Nedo Nadi did not win a gold medal was the one in which he did not compete. Instead, a trio of Frenchmen swept the medals. It was Lippmann's second silver medal in the event, he having previously taken second in 1908; he was the second man to win multiple medals in the individual épée.
The men's foil fencing competition at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing took place on August 13 at the Olympic Green Convention Centre. There were 26 competitors from 21 nations. The event was won by Benjamin Kleibrink of Germany, the nation's first victory in the men's foil. Yuki Ota's silver was Japan's first medal in the event. Salvatore Sanzo of Italy took bronze, becoming the 10th man to win multiple medals in the event.
The fencing competitions at the 2012 Olympic Games in London were held from 28 July to 5 August at the ExCeL Exhibition Centre. Ten events were contested. The International Fencing Federation (FIE) had pushed for the inclusion of two more team events, but the International Olympic Committee voted to keep the current format of ten events.
The men's foil was one of seven fencing events on the Fencing at the 1924 Summer Olympics programme. It was the sixth appearance of the event, which had not been on the programme in 1908. The competition was held from Monday July 1, 1924, to Thursday July 4, 1924. 49 fencers from 17 nations competed. Nations were limited to four fencers each, down from eight in 1920. The event was won by Roger Ducret of France, the nation's third victory in the men's foil. His countryman Philippe Cattiau finished second for the second consecutive Games; Cattiau and Ducret became the second and third men to win multiple medals in the event. Maurice Van Damme earned Belgium's first medal in the men's foil with his bronze.
The men's foil was one of seven fencing events on the Fencing at the 1928 Summer Olympics programme. It was the seventh appearance of the event. The competition was held from 31 July 1928 to 1 August 1928. 54 fencers from 22 nations competed. For the third straight Games, the limit of fencers per nation was reduced. The event was won by Lucien Gaudin of France, the nation's second consecutive and fourth overall victory in the men's foil. Erwin Casmir earned silver to give Germany its first medal in the event. Giulio Gaudini of Italy took bronze.
The men's foil was one of seven fencing events on the fencing at the 1932 Summer Olympics programme. It was the eighth appearance of the event. The competition was held from 2 to 4 August 1932. 26 fencers from 12 nations competed, with one other entered but not starting. Each nation was limited to three fencers. The event was won by Gustavo Marzi of Italy, the nation's third victory in the men's foil. His countryman Giulio Gaudini took bronze for the second consecutive Games, becoming the fourth man to win multiple medals in the event. Joe Levis gave the United States its first men's foil medal with his silver.
The men's foil was one of eight fencing events on the fencing at the 1972 Summer Olympics programme. It was the sixteenth appearance of the event. The competition was held from 29 to 30 August 1972. 57 fencers from 25 nations competed. Nations had been limited to three fencers each since 1928. The event was won by Witold Woyda of Poland, the nation's second victory in the men's foil in three Games. Jenő Kamuti of Hungary repeated as the silver medalist, the seventh man to win multiple medals in the event. France took bronze for the third consecutive Games, this time with Christian Noël earning the honor.
The men's foil was one of ten fencing events on the fencing at the 1996 Summer Olympics programme. It was the twenty-second appearance of the event. The competition was held on 22 July 1996. 45 fencers from 19 nations competed. Nations had been limited to three fencers each since 1928. The event was won by Alessandro Puccini of Italy, the nation's eighth victory in the men's foil. France took the other two medals, with Lionel Plumenail earning silver and Franck Boidin winning the bronze medal match.
The men's foil competition in fencing at the 2012 Olympic Games in London was held on 31 July at the ExCeL London Exhibition Centre. There were 38 competitors from 20 nations. Lei Sheng of China won the gold medal, beating Alaaeldin Abouelkassem from Egypt in the final. It was the first medal in the individual men's foil for each of those nations. Choi Byung-chul of South Korea took bronze. The 2012 podium was the first time since 1904 that no European fencer won a medal in the event.
The men's foil competition in fencing at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro was held on 7 August at the Carioca Arena 3. The medals were presented by Paul Tergat, IOC member, Kenya and Donald Anthony Jr., Executive Board Member of FIE. There were 35 competitors from 19 nations. The event was won by Daniele Garozzo of Italy, the nation's ninth victory in the men's foil and first since 1996. The silver medalist was American Alexander Massialas, earning the United States' first medal in the event since 1960. Timur Safin of Russia took bronze.
The men's foil event at the 2020 Summer Olympics is scheduled to take place on 26 July 2021 at the Makuhari Messe. 36 fencers from 18 nations are expected to compete.
The men's team foil event at the 2020 Summer Olympics took place on 1 August 2021 at the Makuhari Messe. 27 fencers from 9 nations are expected to compete.
