Ed Howlett
Ed Howlett had a very successful weekend at the UK School Games at Loughborough University this weekend, coming away with a silver medal in the individual men's foil and a gold medal in the team men's foil. He was representing England in the age group of 1999 births and younger (so a year below the top age group) and the competition showcased top fencers in that age group from each of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
He had a excellent poule result on Friday, winning all his matches. He kicked off with a 5-1 win against Scotland's Finlay McAndrew. A 5-2 against Wales's Jack Davies followed, then a 5-1 against Rhodri Gibbon, again of Wales. Another 5-1 win against Northern Ireland's Daniel Sigurdssun followed. Ed's final poule against Northern Ireland's Robbie Cockburn looked as if it might be tricky - Cockburn scored the first two hits. However Ed then took control with a straight 5 hits without reply, finishing with a lovely flick hit to shoulder.
The 100% victories and good indicator meant Ed was top seed going into the knockout stage. He received a bye through L16 and faced Robbie Cockburn of Norther Ireland in L8. Ed was sharp from the start, taking several points without reply. Cockburn was able only to pick up the occasional point, resulting in a 15-4 win for Ed. His semi-final match was against left hander Duncan Morrison of Scotland who has had some excellent results in the past, including silver in last season's Scottish Open. Ed started cautiously but soon got to grips with the match, landing several hits in quick succession and finishing with a leaping hit to give him a 15-5 win and a place in the final. His opponent in the final was Dominic De Almeida, a former GB U17 and U20 national champion, so a formidable opponent. So it proved, Ed matched De Almeida for several hits, but De Almeida's excellent decision making and Ed's slight hesitations meant De Almeida took the gold with a 15-7 win.
Sunday saw the team competitions between the four countries. Each weapon had teams of 2 men and 2 women, fencing the same gender in relays of 5 points to 40. England, as top seeds, faced Northerm Ireland, the 4th Seeds. Ed was reserve for this match and England ran out 40-7 winners. Ed fenced in the finals match against Scotland. He again faced Duncan Morrison and took 5 points to Morrison's 2. Ed also fenced Finlay McAndrew again. Ed was slightly too cautious in this match at the start, allowing McAndrew to take the initiative, leaving Ed with 1 point to McAndrew's 5. However, Ed came alive halfway through the fight, creating some stunning moves to draw the bout 5-5. England won the gold with 40 points to 18.
The photos show the men's foil individual medallsts and Ed with his medals.
