En guarde, L.A. Not a sellsword, no sir, but a great swordsman – and salesman – Nick Itkin is warning you .
.. or, rather, inviting you: Tune into fencing in 2028 when the Olympics are staged here, in his hometown.
“We’re gonna put on an amazing show for everyone,” the Olympic fencer said this week, his bronze medal – banged up already from all the show and tell since Itkin won it in the men’s individual foil July 29 in Paris – ready to show off another time over Zoom, at my request. “So keep in touch with the sport and in 2028 make sure you have all your TVs on to see us go crazy.” If you think you might enjoy Itkin’s brand of swashbuckling, high-stakes, high-passion go-crazy, you’ll want to take his advice.
Itkin, 24, is an L.A. guy, a natural-born athlete, the son of Ukrainian immigrants, a fencer and a rhythmic gymnast.
A Palisades High School graduate who’s always been coached by his father, Misha, and who used to lie to people and tell them he was going to soccer practice because it was too embarrassing to tell them he was doing a sport as uncool as fencing. Fast-forward a decade and he’s a two-time Olympic bronze medalist is telling anyone and everyone who’ll listen: Fencing is so cool. Or, to quote his previously unindoctrinated friends, “so sick.
” And so you should totally watch it. Actually, you should try it. No, really.
He ended our conversation this week by pitching me on participating: “I’ll explain all the rules for you,” .