Gaurav Gupta fences his way to 2012

Gaurav Gupta has just completed his first year reading Economics at the University. He is a world class fencer and is the current Indian National Champion at U18 and senior level in the foil category.

May 2011 Update

Gaurav is now studying hard for his end of 2nd year exams. Once completed, he flies to India in mid-June for a training camp and then onto to the Asian Championships being held in Seoul, South Korea between 7-13 July.

The Fencing World Championships will be the focus of the Autumn calendar with Gaurav hoping to turn in a good performance to prepare him for the Olympic Qualifying Tournament in April 2012.

February 2011 Update

Gaurav has had sparkling success since the last update. In early Jan 2011 he became Senior Men’s Foil Champion of India. This success added the senior men’s title to the junior crown which he held already.

You can view Gaurav in the final in this YouTube clip .

After the National Championships it was back to Leicester for first semester exams.

To confirm Olympic qualification Gaurav must now to come in the top three in the South Asian Championships in July.

Gaurav‘s days are filled with lectures, course work, weekly training in London and monthly tournaments around the globe. It’s tough balancing the demands of a strenuous academic course with the training commitments needed to maintain world class performance, yet Gaurav manages to do it and still remain cheerful!
Gaurav has also been featured on BBC regional TV.

September 2010 Update

Gaurav is English by birth but because his parents are Indian had the opportunity to fence for either England or India. England were keen for him to fence for his home nation but were insistent on him becoming a full-time fencer. India would allow him to study for a degree and continue to fence around his studies. So Gaurav made the choice to fence for India. He is a member of the University of Leicester fencing team and is coached in Leicester and London.

This summer he will compete in the Asian Championships in Seoul and then at the Commonwealth Games in Delhi this Autumn.

Selection for the Indian team at the 2012 Olympics will happen in late Spring 2011 so it will be a busy winter season with fitness training & conditioning, working on technique and competition.

Funding for his fencing comes from a variety of sources, not least the Bank of Mum and Dad, so all donations and support are most welcome. Gaurav can be contacted on kgg2@le.ac.uk