Chandigarh fencer Yashkeerat wins bronze in epee event

Yashkeerat became only the second Indian fencer and the first from Chandigarh to claim an individual medal in an epee event at the international level. Last time an Indian fencer won an individual medal in the epee event was in 2006.

Yashkeerat Kaur Hayer

Earlier this week, when the Indian fencing team reached Newcastle in England for the Commonwealth Junior and Cadet Fencing Championships, it arrived just 12 hours before it started. 17-year-old Chandigarh fencer Yashkeerat Kaur Hayer became the second Indian girl to win a medal in this year’s championship, when she won bronze in the girls’ epee event. Laura Sheffield of England won gold. Yashkeerat became only the second Indian fencer and the first from Chandigarh to claim an individual medal in an epee event at the international level. Last time an Indian fencer won an individual medal in the epee event was in 2006.

“We reached the venue around 10 at night a day before the start of the championships and had to go to practice at 4:30 am the next day. Even though I got a bye in my first round, the next matches were tough as I had to adjust to the conditions and fatigue factor. The win in the quarter-final against Danielle Lawson of England was a special one as the whole crowd was cheering for her. Winning the bronze medal in the commonwealth championships is a special thing for me and it will motivate me to qualify for the Senior Commonwealth Championships to be held in Australia later this year,” said Yashkeerat, who lost to Scotland’s Alex Stewart 13-15 in the semi-finals. “I idolise Rossella Flamingo of Italy who won silver in the 2016 Rio Olympics and I hope to fight like her,” she added. Yashkeerat’s event finished on Friday night.

Daughter of Punjab Police Inspector Harjinder Singh Hayer, Yashkeerat took up fencing at the age of 11 at Government Model Senior Secondary School, Sector 10. The girl was also part of the gold medal winning team in the epee event at the sub-junior nationals in Jalgaon in 2013 before winning bronze at the Cadet Nationals. Last year, the Chandigarh girl won bronze in the girls’ epee event at the senior national fencing championships in Sholapur, Maharashtra, before winning two bronze medals at the school nationals in February this year. Yashkeerat also competed in last year’s World Cup in Bahrain where she finished ninth.

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“She used to pursue athletics, swimming and skating earlier before joining fencing under coach Charanjeet Kaur at GMHS-10. Her younger brother Inder Pratap also took up the sport on seeing her. Initially, we would get her fencing kit worth Rs 4,000-5,000 but last year, we got her an international kit which cost over Rs 1.5 lakh. Competing against European competitors is a challenge as they have much superior equipment. And this medal means a lot to our family,” shared Harjinder.

Yashkeerat’s mother 43-year-old Harvinder Pal Kaur, too, was eagerly watching her daughter’s matches on the internet. “We always supported her in whatever game she liked. But initially, relatives and friends would tell us about fencing being a dangerous sport. But it is not. The epee sword is connected electronically. Initially, Yashkeerat would suffer minor injuries in the arms. This medal is a reward for all those injuries,” shared Harvinder.

Former Indian fencing captain and coach Charanjeet Kaur believes that this medal would motivate the youngster. “Yahskeerat’s advantage has been her height and she is very good in counter-attack. The bronze medal in senior nationals was a big boost for her career and her first international medal will also inspire her. Currently, more than 70 kids play fencing at the GMHS-10 and this medal will also inspire them,” shared the coach.

Nitin Sharma

Nitin Sharma is an Assistant Editor with the sports team of The Indian Express. Based out of Chandigarh, Nitin works with the print sports desk while also breaking news stories for the online sports team. A Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Award recipient for the year 2017 for his story ‘Harmans of Moga’, Nitin has also been a two-time recipient of the UNFPA-supported Laadli Media Awards for Gender Sensitivity for the years 2022 and 2023 respectively. Nitin mainly covers Olympics sports disciplines with his main interests in shooting, boxing, wrestling, athletics and much more. The last 17 years with The Indian Express has seen him unearthing stories across India from as far as Andaman and Nicobar to the North East. Nitin also covers cricket apart from women’s cricket with a keen interest. Nitin has covered events like the 2010 Commonwealth Games, the 2011 ODI World Cup, 2016 T20 World Cup and the 2017 AIBA World Youth Boxing Championships. An alumnus of School of Communication Studies, Panjab University, from where he completed his Masters in Mass Communications degree, Nitin has been an avid quizzer too. A Guru Nanak Dev University Colour holder, Nitin’s interest in quizzing began in the town of Talwara Township, a small town near the Punjab-Himachal Pradesh border. When not reporting, Nitin's interests lie in discovering new treks in the mountains or spending time near the river Beas at his hometown. ... Read More

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