With Local Fencer, Everyone Gets the Point
.........................................................................................
Like most 15-year-olds, Lee Kiefer connects with friends through Facebook. But not all teens connect as internationally as the Dunbar High freshman.
Lee has friends in Mexico, Argentina, Hungary, China, Bulgaria, Germany and France -- and she’s met them all.
That happens when you’re a bit of a celebrity in the international fencing community.
Fencing has opened the world to Lee, a straight-A student in Dunbar’s demanding Math, Science and Technology Program.
She has competed in Slovakia, Austria, Germany, France, Hungary and Italy. In April she traveled to Belfast, Northern Ireland for the World Championships. In America, there are still a few states she hasn’t visited -- but not many. She has fenced everywhere from Sacramento to Saratoga, N.Y., Atlanta to Albuquerque and
Portland, Oregon to Miami, F-L-A.
And judging by her trophy room, she has brought back a ribbon, plaque or elegant loving cup from all points in between.
Lee ranks as one of America’s top female fencers -- not just among juniors but all women fencers.
In her age group, she’s No. 1 in the U.S., and ranks second in both the U-17 (Cadet) and U-20 (Junior) divisions. Among all women fencers in the U.S. she ranks fourth.
And she’s known as much for her style as her success. A lithe 5-foot-4, 105- pound athlete, Lee vanquishes opponents with speed and agility.
“She’s a beautiful fencer,” says her mother Teresa.
“When she fences, other parents come around just to watch her.”
Adds her father Steven: “She has an array of moves, much more like a male fencer.”
Steven should know. He captained the Duke fencing team and introduced his daughter to the sport. Lee began fencing at age 7, commuting to Louisville a few times a week because Lexington had no fencing club.
Three years -- and countless hours on I-64 -- later, the Kiefers helped form the Bluegrass Fencing Club and recruited Amgad Khazbak as coach. (In fencing, a coach is called a maestro. Touche!)
After starring in national meets across the country, Lee made her international debut in Germany as a 13-year-old, beating the German champion along the way. Afterward, she was recognized by the town’s “Bürgermeister.” (That’s “mayor” to you and me.)
Normally an intense but quiet fencer, Lee uncharacteristically cranked up the volume against the German, saying afterward, “I let out a massive, man-eating scream.”
She was just as excited but more composed when she helped the U.S. women win their first-ever World Championship in the foil in the meet in Belfast.
Despite her globetrotting schedule, Lee still excels in the classroom. A Duke TIP qualifier in seventh grade, she has followed her sister Alex, who scored a perfect 36 on the ACT in March, at Dunbar.
Only a freshman, Lee already has taken two AP classes, while maintaining her straight-A record.
She also reads voraciously and has set her sights on Duke University after high school.
In fencing, her goals are even higher -- the 2012 Olympic Games in London. (That’s London, England, not Kentucky).
That’s one more destination for Dunbar’s world traveler. “It’s fun traveling,” Lee says.
“Being a fencer makes you unique. I love the sport because you have to be athletic and smart. There’s a lot of strategy. You must adapt well and have to think on your feet.”
As usual, Lee makes a good point.