Richard Kruse (born 30 July 1983) is a former
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies.
* British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...
right-handed
foil
Foil may refer to:
Materials
* Foil (metal), a quite thin sheet of metal, usually manufactured with a rolling mill machine
* Metal leaf, a very thin sheet of decorative metal
* Aluminium foil, a type of wrapping for food
* Tin foil, metal foil ma ...
fencer and four-time
Olympian. In 2015, he was part of the Great Britain team that shocked Olympic champions Italy to win the first
European Games
The European Games is a continental multi-sport event in the Olympic tradition contested by athletes from countries served by national Olympic committees within the European Olympic Committees (EOC), the regional association for such committ ...
gold in team foil, the first British gold medal in a team fencing event at World or European level for fifty years. He retired in 2021.
Career
Kruse won his first international medal, a silver, at the 2001 European Under 20 Championships and in 2002 won gold in at the same event.
He made his Olympic debut at the
2004 Games in
Athens
Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...
, Greece. Competing in the
men's individual foil. He received a bye in the first round, beat
China's
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
Wang Haibin in round two and
Dan Kellner of the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
in the third round before being defeated 8–15 by
Andrea Cassarà
Andrea Cassarà (born 3 January 1984) is an Italian left-handed foil fencer, two-time individual European champion, 2011 individual world champion, and three-time Olympics medalist. In February 2025, he was convicted of intended illicit interfe ...
in the quarter-finals.
His eighth-place finish was the best by a British fencer since the
1992 Summer Olympics
The 1992 Summer Olympics (, ), officially the Games of the XXV Olympiad (, ) and officially branded as Barcelona '92, were an international multi-sport event held from 25 July to 9 August 1992 in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Beginning in 1994 ...
in Barcelona, when
Fiona McIntosh was eighth in the women's foil,
and the best by a British man since the
1964 Summer Olympics
The , officially the and commonly known as Tokyo 1964 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 10 to 24 October 1964 in Tokyo, Japan. Tokyo had been awarded the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this honor was subseq ...
in
Tokyo
Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...
, when
Bill Hoskyns won the silver medal in the individual épée.
In 2006 Kruse won the silver medal in the men's foil event at the
European Fencing Championships
The European Fencing Championships is an annual top-level European fencing competition organized by the European Fencing Confederation.
History
The first competition bearing the name of "European Fencing Championships" was held in Paris in 1921 ...
.
At the
2008 Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes fro ...
in
Beijing
Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...
, China, Kruse again participated in the
men's individual foil event. He defeated
Virgil Sălișcan of
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...
in the round of 32 but was eliminated at the last 16 stage after a 9–10 loss to
Germany's Peter Joppich
Peter Joppich (born 21 December 1982) is a German foil
Foil may refer to:
Materials
* Foil (metal), a quite thin sheet of metal, usually manufactured with a rolling mill machine
* Metal leaf, a very thin sheet of decorative metal
* Aluminium f ...
. He finished 14th.
[
In 2009 Kruse had his most successful season to date. He won a gold medal at the World Cup event in ]Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
and a silver medal in Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
, then gold in Venice before winning a silver medal at the 2009 European Fencing Championships The 2009 European Fencing Championships was held at the International Fair Plovdiv in Plovdiv, Bulgaria
Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans ...
held in Plovdiv
Plovdiv (, ) is the List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, second-largest city in Bulgaria, 144 km (93 miles) southeast of the capital Sofia. It had a population of 490,983 and 675,000 in the greater metropolitan area. Plovdiv is a cultural hub ...
, Bulgaria. Kruse finished the season ranked fourth in the world.
At the 2011 World Cup event in Seoul
Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...
, South Korea, Kruse won the silver medal in the men's foil. he won five matches, including a 15–11 defeat of compatriot Laurence Halsted in the last eight to reach the final against Andrea Baldini
Andrea Baldini (born 19 December 1985) is an Italian foil fencer, several time European and World champion and team Olympic champion in 2012. He is the only foil fencer in history to have obtained four golds (European and World - individual and ...
of Italy. Baldini won the final by a single point, 15–14 to take the gold medal.
Kruse is coached by former Polish Olympian turned British national Ziemowit Wojciechowski.[ He is also a coach for his ZFW fencing club.]
In 2012, Richard Kruse won bronze at the Wakayama Grand Prix. Only 2 months later he claimed another bronze at the European Championships in Legnano, having been seeded 45th after the poule stages. At the London Olympics later that year, he finished 17th in the men's individual event, losing to Artur Akhmatkhuzin
Artur Kamilevich Akhmatkhuzin (; born 21 May 1988) is a Russian foil fencer, silver medallist at the 2013 World Fencing Championships.
Career
Akhmatkhuzin, who is of Tatar descent, made his debut in international competition at the 2005 Cadet ...
in the last 32. He was part of the British team that came 6th, losing to Italy in the quarter-finals and then beating France and losing to Russia in the ranking rounds.
In 2016 Kruse again attended the Olympic Games in Rio. He placed fourth overall in the Men's Individual Foil, losing to Timur Safin of Russia in the Bronze Medal Match.
In 2018 Kruse won silver in the individual men's foil event at the World Championships in Wuxi, China.
After winning gold at the Prince Takamodo World Cup in Tokyo, on 26 January 2019, he was ranked number one in the world, the first British fencer to achieve that position.
Kruse retired in May 2021. He now works as a fencing coach for Salle Paul Fencing Club in Hendon
Hendon is an urban area in the London Borough of Barnet, northwest London northwest of Charing Cross. Hendon was an ancient Manorialism, manor and parish in the county of Middlesex and a former borough, the Municipal Borough of Hendon; it has ...
. When he retired in 2021, he had been a six times British fencing champion, winning six foil titles at the British Fencing Championships
The British Fencing Championships are held annually to determine the British champion. The Championships are currently held at the English Institute of Sport, Sheffield or the Lee Valley Athletics Centre. These championships (known as the Nationa ...
, from 2001 to 2018.
Medal Record
World Championship
European Championship
Grand Prix
World Cup
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kruse, Richard
1983 births
Living people
British male foil fencers
Olympic fencers for Great Britain
Fencers at the 2004 Summer Olympics
Fencers at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Fencers at the 2012 Summer Olympics
Fencers from London
Fencers at the 2015 European Games
European Games medalists in fencing
European Games gold medalists for Great Britain
Fencers at the 2016 Summer Olympics
21st-century British sportsmen