5 facts about history-making U.S. Olympic fencer Lee Kiefer

Rick Suter

Sun, Jul 25, 2021, 4:06 PM·4 min read

Beyond the gold medal...

(Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

Lee Kiefer made history at the Tokyo Olympics, becoming the first U.S. women's fencer to win gold in the individual foil competition. Kiefer bested ROC's Inna Deriglazova 15-13 to win the top spot—a needed boost in the medal count for Team USA that has been, to this point, underwhelming. The major accomplishment also catapulted her into the Olympics spotlight in the United States (and beyond), leaving many wanting to know more about this talented U.S. fencer. We're definitely in that majority.

Fencing runs in the family

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Kiefer's father, Steve, captained the Duke Blue Devils fencing team back in the 1980s, and that passion carried over to his family. Lee started fencing at five years old, and both her siblings Alex and Axel, have lunged and feinted in foil competitions. Alex a champ at Harvard; Alex following in his older sister's footsteps at Notre Dame. And don't forget the American Fencing Power Could that includes Lee's husband, U.S. men's fencer Gerek Meinhardt (pictured left). (Axel Kiefer won an award named in honor of his sister and brother-in-law: Lee Kiefer/Gerek Meinhardt Award, presented to the fencer who gives their time selflessly and humbly in training. )

Lee honed her fencing skills...in the family's dining room?

(AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Yes! After watching their father Steve compete, Lee, Alex and Axel became interested in fencing, and their introductory training sessions began from a makeshift fencing club in the dining room. En garde! (But watch the plates.)

More than just fencing runs in the family...

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Kiefer finished her undergrad work at the University of Notre Dame and is currently enrolled as a medical student at the University of Kentucky. Her mom, Teresa, is a psychiatrist, her father Steve is a neurosurgeon, and both sibs have also gone the medical route. And Gerek Meinhardt adds to the Team USA power couple's resume as he too is enrolled at The University of Kentucky's School of Medicine.

The 2016 Rio Olympics was almost a swan song for Kiefer—almost.

(Photo by Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images)

Her achievement at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics—as you'd typically expect with the pressure-filled makeup of Olympic athletes—has an incredible build to the moment. An amazing backstory. Lee is a right-handed fencer and only 5-foot-4, both of which buck the desired normalcies of fencers—tall and left-handed. However, her competitiveness matched her eagerness, and she continued to excel in the sport. But the Olympic Games part of her journey was thought to have ended in Rio in 2016. But it wasn't, and soon after, Kiefer found herself ranked No. 1 by the IFF, the first-ever nod for a U.S. woman fencer. A few years later: Gold!

One of her favorite foods...

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We got hungry researching and learning all of the interesting tidbits about Lee Kiefer, and that brought us to a final, delectable dive — "wonder what Lee would snack on in such circumstances?" And it turns out, one of her favorite foods is one of our favorites! Lumpia, the Filipino version of an egg roll, is one of the lesser-known treasures in the food world. Traditionally stuffed with pork—though we've had a few veggie versions—it's one of those delicious appetizers that is perfect for all-day sports watching (such as the Olympics). Check out the best images from Lee's gold medal victory...

Awesome images from Lee Kiefer's historic gold-medal bout