12:30pm Friday 30th July 2010
By Dan Barnes
SOPHIE Williams is celebrating after picking up two medals at the Great Britain Fencing Championships on Sunday.
The Winsley fencer, who is fifth in the British Sabre rankings, won gold in the team event as part of the Truro A team, alongside British number two Louise Bond-Williams and Katie Hendra, who is ranked sixth in the country.
After victories over Edinburgh and Truro B, Williams’ team beat London-based Scimitar 45-21 in the final at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield.
The 19-year-old also brought home the bronze medal from the individual event.
Williams came out second-best when she went head-to-head with British number one Chrystal Nicholl, from the Brentwood club, in the semi-finals but was still happy with her performance.
“I fenced really well against Chrystal and was only 8-6 down at one point but then she stepped up another gear,” said Williams, who trains full-time in Truro.
“I lost 15-10 in the end and couldn’t quite match her but I haven’t faced her in competitions that many times it was definitely one of my better performances against her.
“I finished second in the British Championships in 2006 and although I didn’t do as well in the individual competition this time, I feel like I earned it a lot more and that it’s a fair reflection of my ability, because there were a lot of good people that weren’t there last time.
“And of course, being part of the top team in the country is great.”
Williams will now focus on the Commonwealth Championships this September.
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