Eleanor Harvey, a senior on the Ohio State women's fencing team, made her Olympic debut this morning and already turned some heads.
In just her second Olympic match ever, Harvey stunned world No. 1 Arriana Errigo of Italy to advance to the women's foil quarterfinals.
When you score a table @RealSports to watch the #Olympics. #EleanorHarvey #CAN #fencing pic.twitter.com/aO4t6MlOZs
— RealSports (@RealSports) August 10, 2016
From an Ohio State release:
Harvey, a native of Hamilton, Ontario, kept pace with the 2012 Olympic silver medalist and two-time world champion, fencing to a draw and then taking an 11-10 lead at the end of the first period. Harvey’s elusive style disrupted the Italian and allowed Errigo to score just once as she beat the gold medal favorite by four touches in her Olympic debut. In her quarterfinal bout, Harvey battled back against Ines Boubakri (TUN) to tie it at 12-all after being down by six. In a close finish, Harvey kept her medal hopes alive, drawing within one point of Boubari (ranked No. 9 in the world), but fell, 15-13. Harvey was impressive as well in the Round of 32 with a 15-6 win over Anissa Khelfaoui of Algeria.
Though the Buckeye senior's run ended in the quarterfinals, she still made history becoming the first Canadian ever to reach the final eight at the Olympics in the event.
Harvey will return to Columbus for her senior season where she'll look to defend her 2016 NCAA Title in women's foil.
