# World Fencing Championships

The World Fencing Championships is an annual competition in fencing organized by the International Fencing Federation. Contestants may participate in foil, épée, and sabre events.

## History

The FIE first organized an international fencing championship in Paris, France in 1921. The competition in its early years was named the European Championships (Championnats d'Europe), and the initial participants were members of the fencing federations of the FIE. In 1921, the only event was men's épée individual. In 1922 and 1923, men's sabre individual was also held. In 1925, only men's sabre individual was held. Since 1926, men's individual events have been held in all three weapons: épée, foil, and sabre. In 1929, women's foil was added to the program as well as a men's foil team event. Men's épée and sabre teams were added in 1930 and women's foil team in 1932. Women's épée individual and team events were added in 1988, and women's sabre individual and team in 1999.
After the 1936 Olympics, the government of Benito Mussolini in Italy offered national recognition and privileges to winners of Olympic or world titles, but not European titles. The Italian fencing federation requested that the FIE change the name of the European Championships to World Championships (Championnats du Monde). The FIE approved this request and gave retroactive World Championship status to the previous European Championships.
Since 1921, the FIE championships have occurred annually except for an interruption forced by World War II from 1939 to 1946, and in some of the years when the Summer Olympics are held. The fencing competitions at the Summer Olympics have served as the World Championships of the year for the relevant events. Since 1932, World Championships have been held during the Olympic years only for those events not being held during that year's Summer Olympics. For the years 1932, 1936, 1948, 1952, and 1956, World Championships were held only in Women's Foil Team since that event was not on the Olympic program during those years. After this event was added to the Olympic program beginning with the 1960 Olympics, the FIE stopped holding World Championships during the Olympic years until 1988 when women's épée individual and women's épée team events were added to the World Championship program, but the IOC declined to add these events to the Olympic program. A World Championship in these two events was again held in 1992 for the same reason. Finally, in 1996 the IOC added these two events to the Olympic program, and the FIE again stopped holding a World Championship in an Olympic year.
When the FIE added women's sabre to the World Championships in 1999, the IOC refused to add these two events to the 2000 Olympic program and so the FIE held a World Championships in only women's sabre in 2000. For the 2004 Olympics, the IOC allowed women's sabre to be contested at the Olympics but only under the condition that the number of fencing events being contested (individual and team) remain at ten. The FIE reluctantly agreed to this condition, and has satisfied it by not contesting two of the team events at the Olympics but holding World Championships for them instead during those years. So World Championships have been held but Olympic events have not been held (2004–16) for the following events:
* 2004 – women's foil team, women's sabre team
* 2008 – men's foil team, women's épée team
* 2012 – men's épée team, women's sabre team
* 2016 – men's sabre team, women's foil team
From 2020 Summer Olympics, all 12 fencing events were held, which means no World Championships are held on Olympic years.

### Naming

These World Fencing Championships are usually referred to as Senior World Fencing Championships because the FIE also runs three other World Championships. Beginning in 1950, the FIE also sanctioned an annual competitions which it originally called the Junior World Criterium (Criterium Mondial des Jeunes). Entries were originally restricted to those 21 years of age or lower, but in 1960 the age limit was dropped to 20. In 1964, the name of the competition was officially changed to Junior World Championships, and world championship status was retroactively granted to the participants of the previous competitions.
Beginning in 1987, the FIE began sanctioning an annual competition called the Cadet World Championships. Entries were restricted to those 17 years of age or lower. Originally the Junior and Cadet World Championships were held in different cities on different dates, but beginning in 1993 they've been called the Junior/Cadet World Championships and have been held at the same venue with all of the cadet events held first followed by all of the junior events.
Beginning in 1997, the FIE began sanctioning an annual competition called the Veteran World Championships. Entries were restricted to those 40 years of age or older the first year, and 50 years or older in subsequent years.

## Editions

| Edition | Year | Host City | Country | Events |
| International Fencing Championships |||||
| 1 | 1921 | Paris | France | 1 |
| 2 | 1922 | ParisOstend | France Belgium | 11 |
| 3 | 1923 | The Hague | Netherlands | 2 |
| 4 | 1925 | Ostend | Belgium | 1 |
| 5 | 1926 | BudapestOstend | Hungary Belgium | 21 |
| 6 | 1927 | Vichy | France | 3 |
| 7 | 1929 | Naples | Italy | 5 |
| 8 | 1930 | Liège | Belgium | 7 |
| 9 | 1931 | Vienna | Austria | 7 |
| 10 | 1932 | Copenhagen | Denmark | 1 |
| 11 | 1933 | Budapest | Hungary | 8 |
| 12 | 1934 | Warsaw | Poland | 8 |
| 13 | 1935 | Lausanne | Switzerland | 8 |
| 14 | 1936 | San Remo | Italy | 1 |
| World Fencing Championships |||||
| 1 | 1937 | Paris | France | 8 |
| 2 | 1938 | Piešťany | Czechoslovakia | 7 |
| 3 | 1947 | Lisbon | Portugal | 8 |
| 4 | 1948 | The Hague | Netherlands | 1 |
| 5 | 1949 | Cairo | Egypt | 7 |
| 6 | 1950 | Monte Carlo | Monaco | 8 |
| 7 | 1951 | Stockholm | Sweden | 8 |
| 8 | 1952 | Copenhagen | Denmark | 1 |
| 9 | 1953 | Brussels | Belgium | 8 |
| 10 | 1954 | Luxembourg | Luxembourg | 8 |
| 11 | 1955 | Rome | Italy | 8 |
| 12 | 1956 | London | Great Britain | 1 |
| 13 | 1957 | Paris | France | 8 |
| 14 | 1958 | Philadelphia | United States | 8 |
| 15 | 1959 | Budapest | Hungary | 8 |
| 16 | 1961 | Turin | Italy | 8 |
| 17 | 1962 | Buenos Aires | Argentina | 8 |
| 18 | 1963 | Gdańsk | Poland | 8 |
| 19 | 1965 | Paris | France | 8 |
| 20 | 1966 | Moscow | Soviet Union | 8 |
| 21 | 1967 | Montreal | Canada | 8 |
| 22 | 1969 | Havana | Cuba | 8 |
| 23 | 1970 | Ankara | Turkey | 8 |
| 24 | 1971 | Vienna | Austria | 8 |
| 25 | 1973 | Gothenburg | Sweden | 8 |
| 26 | 1974 | Grenoble | France | 8 |
| Edition | Year | Host City | Country | Events |
| 27 | 1975 | Budapest | Hungary | 8 |
| 28 | 1977 | Buenos Aires | Argentina | 8 |
| 29 | 1978 | Hamburg | West Germany | 8 |
| 30 | 1979 | Melbourne | Australia | 8 |
| 31 | 1981 | Clermont-Ferrand | France | 8 |
| 32 | 1982 | Rome | Italy | 8 |
| 33 | 1983 | Vienna | Austria | 8 |
| 34 | 1985 | Barcelona | Spain | 8 |
| 35 | 1986 | Sofia | Bulgaria | 8 |
| 36 | 1987 | Lausanne | Switzerland | 8 |
| 37 | 1988 | Orléans | France | 2 |
| 38 | 1989 | Denver | United States | 10 |
| 39 | 1990 | Lyon | France | 10 |
| 40 | 1991 | Budapest | Hungary | 10 |
| 41 | 1992 | Havana | Cuba | 2 |
| 42 | 1993 | Essen | Germany | 10 |
| 43 | 1994 | Athens | Greece | 10 |
| 44 | 1995 | The Hague | Netherlands | 10 |
| 45 | 1997 | Cape Town | South Africa | 10 |
| 46 | 1998 | La Chaux-de-Fonds | Switzerland | 10 |
| 47 | 1999 | Seoul | South Korea | 12 |
| 48 | 2000 | Budapest | Hungary | 2 |
| 49 | 2001 | Nîmes | France | 12 |
| 50 | 2002 | Lisbon | Portugal | 12 |
| 51 | 2003 | Havana | Cuba | 12 |
| 52 | 2004 | New York City | United States | 2 |
| 53 | 2005 | Leipzig | Germany | 12 |
| 54 | 2006 | Turin | Italy | 12 |
| 55 | 2007 | Saint Petersburg | Russia | 12 |
| 56 | 2008 | Beijing | China | 2 |
| 57 | 2009 | Antalya | Turkey | 12 |
| 58 | 2010 | Paris | France | 12 |
| 59 | 2011 | Catania | Italy | 12 |
| 60 | 2012 | Kyiv | Ukraine | 2 |
| 61 | 2013 | Budapest | Hungary | 12 |
| 62 | 2014 | Kazan | Russia | 12 |
| 63 | 2015 | Moscow | Russia | 12 |
| 64 | 2016 | Rio de Janeiro | Brazil | 2 |
| 65 | 2017 | Leipzig | Germany | 12 |
| 66 | 2018 | Wuxi | China | 12 |
| 67 | 2019 | Budapest | Hungary | 12 |
| 68 | 2022 | Cairo | Egypt | 12 |
| 69 | 2023 | Milan | Italy | 12 |
| 70 | 2025 | Tbilisi | Georgia | 12 |
| 71 | 2026 | Hong Kong | Hong Kong | 12 |

## Hosting tally

    Hosting nations 1921–2023
| Times hosted | Host country |
| 12 | France |
| 8 | Hungary, Italy |
| 5 | Belgium |
| 3 | Austria, Cuba, Germany, Netherlands, Russia, Switzerland, United States |
| 2 | Argentina, China, Denmark, Egypt, Poland, Portugal, Sweden, Turkey |
| 1 | Australia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Czechoslovakia, Great Britain, Greece, Luxembourg, Monaco, South Africa, South Korea, Ukraine, Spain, Soviet Union, West Germany |

## Medal table

This table has been last updated after the 2023 World Fencing Championships. This counts the medals from the World Championships since 1921, and does not include the results of the fencing competitions at the Summer Olympics.
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| 1 | Italy | 122 | 112 | 137 | 371 |
| 2 | France | 97 | 98 | 98 | 293 |
| 3 | Hungary | 96 | 87 | 95 | 278 |
| 4 | Soviet Union | 92 | 54 | 47 | 193 |
| 5 | Russia | 56 | 32 | 36 | 124 |
| 6 | West Germany | 25 | 26 | 16 | 67 |
| 7 | Germany | 22 | 35 | 45 | 102 |
| 8 | Poland | 18 | 29 | 42 | 89 |
| 9 | Romania | 13 | 22 | 32 | 67 |
| 10 | United States | 12 | 16 | 18 | 46 |
| 11 | Ukraine | 12 | 12 | 20 | 44 |
| 12 | South Korea | 11 | 12 | 27 | 50 |
| 13 | China | 8 | 20 | 17 | 45 |
| 14 | Sweden | 7 | 15 | 21 | 43 |
| 15 | Cuba | 6 | 5 | 9 | 20 |
| 16 | Estonia | 5 | 6 | 6 | 17 |
| 17 | Denmark | 5 | 3 | 4 | 12 |
| 18 | Austria | 4 | 4 | 9 | 17 |
| 19 | Japan | 4 | 2 | 8 | 14 |
| 20 | Great Britain | 3 | 6 | 9 | 18 |
| 21 | Netherlands | 3 | 3 | 6 | 12 |
| 22 | Switzerland | 2 | 9 | 13 | 24 |
| 23 | Belgium | 2 | 4 | 11 | 17 |
| 24 | Spain | 2 | 2 | 7 | 11 |
| 25 | Azerbaijan | 2 | 2 | 4 | 8 |
| 26 | Bulgaria | 1 | 3 | 5 | 9 |
| 27 | Czechoslovakia | 1 | 3 | 1 | 5 |
| 28 | Norway | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 29 | Brazil | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 30 | Venezuela | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| 31 | Greece | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| 31 | Tunisia | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| 33 | Belarus | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 33 | Canada | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 33 | East Germany | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 36 | Georgia | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 37 | Portugal | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 38 | Egypt | 0 | 0 | 8 | 8 |
| 39 | Hong Kong | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 |
| 40 | CIS | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 40 | Colombia | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 40 | Finland | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 40 | Iran | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 40 | Kazakhstan | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Totals (44 entries) | Totals (44 entries) | 633 | 631 | 775 | 2,039 |

## World champions
### Épée

| Year | Men's individual | Women's individual | Men's team | Women's team |
| 1921 | Lucien Gaudin | | | |
| 1922 | Raoul Heide | | | |
| 1923 | Wouter Brouwer | | | |
| 1926 | Georges Tainturier | | | |
| 1927 | Georges Buchard | | | |
| 1929 | Philippe Cattiau | | | |
| 1930 | Philippe Cattiau | | Belgium | |
| 1931 | Georges Buchard | | Italy | |
| 1933 | Georges Buchard | | Italy | |
| 1934 | Pál Dunay | | France | |
| 1935 | Hans Drakenberg | | France | |
| 1937 | Bernard Schmetz | | Italy | |
| 1938 | Michel Pécheux | | France | |
| 1939–1946 | did not take place due to World War II | did not take place due to World War II | did not take place due to World War II | did not take place due to World War II |
| 1947 | Édouard Artigas | | France | |
| 1949 | Dario Mangiarotti | | Italy | |
| 1950 | Mogens Lüchow | | Italy | |
| 1951 | Edoardo Mangiarotti | | France | |
| 1953 | József Sákovics | | Italy | |
| 1954 | Edoardo Mangiarotti | | Italy | |
| 1955 | Giorgio Anglesio | | Italy | |
| 1957 | Armand Mouyal | | Italy | |
| 1958 | Bill Hoskyns | | Italy | |
| 1959 | Bruno Habārovs | | Hungary | |
| 1961 | Jack Guittet | | Soviet Union | |
| 1962 | István Kausz | | France | |
| 1963 | Roland Losert | | Poland | |
| 1965 | Zoltán Nemere | | France | |
| 1966 | Aleksey Nikanchikov | | France | |
| 1967 | Aleksey Nikanchikov | | Soviet Union | |
| 1969 | Bohdan Andrzejewski | | Soviet Union | |
| 1970 | Aleksey Nikanchikov | | Hungary | |
| 1971 | Grigory Kriss | | Hungary | |
| 1973 | Rolf Edling | | West Germany | |
| 1974 | Rolf Edling | | Sweden | |
| 1975 | Alexander Pusch | | Sweden | |
| 1977 | Johan Harmenberg | | Sweden | |
| 1978 | Alexander Pusch | | Hungary | |
| 1979 | Philippe Riboud | | Soviet Union | |
| 1981 | Zoltán Székely | | Soviet Union | |
| 1982 | Jenő Pap | | France | |
| 1983 | Elmar Borrmann | | France | |
| 1985 | Philippe Boisse | | West Germany | |
| 1986 | Philippe Riboud | | West Germany | |
| 1987 | Volker Fischer | | Soviet Union | |
| 1988 | event not held | Brigitte Benon | event not held | West Germany |
| 1989 | Manuel Pereira | Anja Straub | Italy | Hungary |
| 1990 | Thomas Gerull | Taymi Chappé | Italy | West Germany |
| 1991 | Andrey Shuvalov | Mariann Horváth | Soviet Union | Hungary |
| 1992 | event not held | Mariann Horváth | event not held | Hungary |
| 1993 | Pavel Kolobkov | Oksana Jermakova | Italy | Hungary |
| 1994 | Pavel Kolobkov | Laura Chiesa | France | Spain |
| 1995 | Éric Srecki | Joanna Jakimiuk | Germany | Hungary |
| 1997 | Éric Srecki | Mirayda García | Cuba | Hungary |
| 1998 | Hugues Obry | Laura Flessel-Colovic | Hungary | France |
| 1999 | Arnd Schmitt | Laura Flessel-Colovic | France | Hungary |
| 2001 | Paolo Milanoli | Claudia Bokel | Hungary | Russia |
| 2002 | Pavel Kolobkov | Hyun Hee | France | Hungary |
| 2003 | Fabrice Jeannet | Natalia Konrad | Russia | Russia |
| 2005 | Pavel Kolobkov | Danuta Dmowska | France | France |
| 2006 | Wang Lei | Tímea Nagy | France | China |
| 2007 | Krisztián Kulcsár | Britta Heidemann | France | France |
| 2008 | events not held | events not held | events not held | France |
| 2009 | Anton Avdeyev | Lyubov Shutova | France | Italy |
| 2010 | Nikolai Novosjolov | Maureen Nisima | France | Romania |
| 2011 | Paolo Pizzo | Li Na | France | Romania |
| 2012 | events not held | events not held | United States | event not held |
| 2013 | Nikolai Novosjolov | Julia Beljajeva | Hungary | Russia |
| 2014 | Ulrich Robeiri | Rossella Fiamingo | France | Russia |
| 2015 | Géza Imre | Rossella Fiamingo | Ukraine | China |
| 2017 | Paolo Pizzo | Tatyana Gudkova | France | Estonia |
| 2018 | Yannick Borel | Mara Navarria | Switzerland | United States |
| 2019 | Gergely Siklósi | Nathalie Moellhausen | France | China |
| 2022 | Romain Cannone | Song Se-ra | France | South Korea |
| 2023 | Máté Tamás Koch | Marie-Florence Candassamy | Italy | Poland |

### Foil

| Year | Men's individual | Women's individual | Men's team | Women's team |
| 1926 | Giorgio Chiavacci | | | |
| 1927 | Oreste Puliti | | | |
| 1929 | Oreste Puliti | Helene Mayer | Italy | |
| 1930 | Giulio Gaudini | Jenny Addams | Italy | |
| 1931 | René Lemoine | Helene Mayer | Italy | |
| 1932 | events not held | events not held | events not held | Denmark |
| 1933 | Gioacchino Guaragna | Gwendoline Neligan | Italy | Hungary |
| 1934 | Giulio Gaudini | Ilona Elek | Italy | Hungary |
| 1935 | André Gardère | Ilona Elek | Italy | Hungary |
| 1936 | events not held | events not held | events not held | Germany |
| 1937 | Gustavo Marzi | Helene Mayer | Italy | Hungary |
| 1938 | Gioacchino Guaragna | Marie Šedivá | Italy | event not held |
| 1939–1946 | did not take place due to World War II | did not take place due to World War II | did not take place due to World War II | did not take place due to World War II |
| 1947 | Christian d'Oriola | Ellen Müller-Preis | France | Denmark |
| 1948 | events not held | events not held | events not held | Denmark |
| 1949 | Christian d'Oriola | Ellen Müller-Preis | Italy | event not held |
| 1950 | Renzo Nostini | Ellen Müller-Preis & Renée Garilhe | Italy | France |
| 1951 | Manlio Di Rosa | Ilona Elek | France | France |
| 1952 | events not held | events not held | events not held | Hungary |
| 1953 | Christian d'Oriola | Irene Camber | France | Hungary |
| 1954 | Christian d'Oriola | Karen Lachmann | Italy | Hungary |
| 1955 | József Gyuricza | Lídia Dömölky | Italy | Hungary |
| 1956 | events not held | events not held | events not held | Soviet Union |
| 1957 | Mihály Fülöp | Alexandra Zabelina | Hungary | Italy |
| 1958 | Giancarlo Bergamini | Valentina Rastvorova | France | Soviet Union |
| 1959 | Allan Jay | Emma Yefimova | Soviet Union | Hungary |
| 1961 | Ryszard Parulski | Heidi Schmid | Soviet Union | Soviet Union |
| 1962 | German Sveshnikov | Olga Szabó-Orbán | Soviet Union | Hungary |
| 1963 | Jean-Claude Magnan | Ildikó Rejtő | Soviet Union | Soviet Union |
| 1965 | Jean-Claude Magnan | Galina Gorokhova | Soviet Union | Soviet Union |
| 1966 | German Sveshnikov | Tatyana Samusenko | Soviet Union | Soviet Union |
| 1967 | Viktor Putyatin | Alexandra Zabelina | Romania | Hungary |
| 1969 | Friedrich Wessel | Elena Belova | Soviet Union | Romania |
| 1970 | Friedrich Wessel | Galina Gorokhova | Soviet Union | Soviet Union |
| 1971 | Vasyl Stankovych | Marie-Chantal Demaille | France | Soviet Union |
| 1973 | Christian Noël | Valentina Nikonova | Soviet Union | Hungary |
| 1974 | Alexandr Romankov | Ildikó Bóbis | Soviet Union | Soviet Union |
| 1975 | Christian Noël | Ecaterina Stahl | France | Soviet Union |
| 1977 | Alexandr Romankov | Valentina Sidorova | West Germany | Soviet Union |
| 1978 | Didier Flament | Valentina Sidorova | Poland | Soviet Union |
| 1979 | Alexandr Romankov | Cornelia Hanisch | Soviet Union | Soviet Union |
| 1981 | Vladimir Smirnov | Cornelia Hanisch | Soviet Union | Soviet Union |
| 1982 | Alexandr Romankov | Nailya Gilyazova | Soviet Union | Italy |
| 1983 | Alexandr Romankov | Dorina Vaccaroni | West Germany | Italy |
| 1985 | Mauro Numa | Cornelia Hanisch | Italy | West Germany |
| 1986 | Andrea Borella | Anja Fichtel | Italy | Soviet Union |
| 1987 | Mathias Gey | Elisabeta Tufan | West Germany | Hungary |
| 1989 | Alexander Koch | Olga Velichko | Soviet Union | West Germany |
| 1990 | Philippe Omnès | Anja Fichtel | Italy | Italy |
| 1991 | Ingo Weißenborn | Giovanna Trillini | Cuba | Italy |
| 1993 | Alexander Koch | Francesca Bortolozzi | Germany | Germany |
| 1994 | Rolando Tucker | Réka Szabó-Lăzar | Italy | Romania |
| 1995 | Dmitriy Shevchenko | Laura Badea | Cuba | Italy |
| 1997 | Sergei Golubitsky | Giovanna Trillini | France | Italy |
| 1998 | Sergei Golubitsky | Sabine Bau | Poland | Italy |
| 1999 | Sergei Golubitsky | Valentina Vezzali | France | Germany |
| 2001 | Salvatore Sanzo | Valentina Vezzali | France | Italy |
| 2002 | Simone Vanni | Svetlana Boyko | Germany | Russia |
| 2003 | Peter Joppich | Valentina Vezzali | Italy | Poland |
| 2004 | events not held | events not held | events not held | Italy |
| 2005 | Salvatore Sanzo | Valentina Vezzali | France | South Korea |
| 2006 | Peter Joppich | Margherita Granbassi | France | Russia |
| 2007 | Peter Joppich | Valentina Vezzali | France | Poland |
| 2008 | events not held | events not held | Italy | event not held |
| 2009 | Andrea Baldini | Aida Shanayeva | Italy | Italy |
| 2010 | Peter Joppich | Elisa Di Francisca | China | Italy |
| 2011 | Andrea Cassarà | Valentina Vezzali | China | Russia |
| 2013 | Miles Chamley-Watson | Arianna Errigo | Italy | Italy |
| 2014 | Aleksey Cheremisinov | Arianna Errigo | France | Italy |
| 2015 | Yūki Ōta | Inna Deriglazova | Italy | Italy |
| 2016 | events not held | events not held | events not held | Russia |
| 2017 | Dmitry Zherebchenko | Inna Deriglazova | Italy | Italy |
| 2018 | Alessio Foconi | Alice Volpi | Italy | United States |
| 2019 | Enzo Lefort | Inna Deriglazova | United States | Russia |
| 2022 | Enzo Lefort | Ysaora Thibus | Italy | Italy |
| 2023 | Tommaso Marini | Alice Volpi | Japan | Italy |

### Sabre

| Year | Men's individual | Women's individual | Men's team | Women's team |
| 1922 | Adrianus de Jong | | | |
| 1923 | Adrianus de Jong | | | |
| 1925 | János Garay | | | |
| 1926 | Sándor Gombos | | | |
| 1927 | Sándor Gombos | | | |
| 1929 | Gyula Glykais | | | |
| 1930 | György Piller | | Hungary | |
| 1931 | György Piller | | Hungary | |
| 1933 | Endre Kabos | | Hungary | |
| 1934 | Endre Kabos | | Hungary | |
| 1935 | Aladár Gerevich | | Hungary | |
| 1937 | Pál Kovács | | Hungary | |
| 1938 | Aldo Montano | | Italy | |
| 1939–1946 | did not take place due to World War II | did not take place due to World War II | did not take place due to World War II | did not take place due to World War II |
| 1947 | Aldo Montano | | Italy | |
| 1949 | Gastone Darè | | Italy | |
| 1950 | Jean Levavasseur | | Italy | |
| 1951 | Aladár Gerevich | | Hungary | |
| 1953 | Pál Kovács | | Hungary | |
| 1954 | Rudolf Kárpáti | | Hungary | |
| 1955 | Aladár Gerevich | | Hungary | |
| 1957 | Jerzy Pawłowski | | Hungary | |
| 1958 | Yakov Rylsky | | Hungary | |
| 1959 | Rudolf Kárpáti | | Poland | |
| 1961 | Yakov Rylsky | | Poland | |
| 1962 | Zoltán Horváth | | Poland | |
| 1963 | Yakov Rylsky | | Poland | |
| 1965 | Jerzy Pawłowski | | Soviet Union | |
| 1966 | Jerzy Pawłowski | | Hungary | |
| 1967 | Mark Rakita | | Soviet Union | |
| 1969 | Viktor Sidyak | | Soviet Union | |
| 1970 | Tibor Pézsa | | Soviet Union | |
| 1971 | Michele Maffei | | Soviet Union | |
| 1973 | Mario Aldo Montano | | Hungary | |
| 1974 | Mario Aldo Montano | | Soviet Union | |
| 1975 | Vladimir Nazlymov | | Soviet Union | |
| 1977 | Pál Gerevich | | Soviet Union | |
| 1978 | Viktor Krovopuskov | | Hungary | |
| 1979 | Vladimir Nazlymov | | Soviet Union | |
| 1981 | Dariusz Wódke | | Hungary | |
| 1982 | Viktor Krovopuskov | | Hungary | |
| 1983 | Vasil Etropolski | | Soviet Union | |
| 1985 | György Nébald | | Soviet Union | |
| 1986 | Sergey Mindirgasov | | Soviet Union | |
| 1987 | Jean-François Lamour | | Soviet Union | |
| 1989 | Grigory Kiriyenko | | Soviet Union | |
| 1990 | György Nébald | | Soviet Union | |
| 1991 | Grigory Kiriyenko | | Hungary | |
| 1993 | Grigory Kiriyenko | | Hungary | |
| 1994 | Felix Becker | | Russia | |
| 1995 | Grigory Kiriyenko | | Italy | |
| 1997 | Stanislav Pozdnyakov | | France | |
| 1998 | Luigi Tarantino | | Hungary | |
| 1999 | Damien Touya | Yelena Jemayeva | France | Italy |
| 2000 | event not held | Yelena Jemayeva | event not held | United States |
| 2001 | Stanislav Pozdnyakov | Anne-Lise Touya | Russia | Russia |
| 2002 | Stanislav Pozdnyakov | Tan Xue | Russia | Russia |
| 2003 | Volodymyr Lukashenko | Dorina Mihai | Russia | Italy |
| 2004 | events not held | events not held | events not held | Russia |
| 2005 | Mihai Covaliu | Anne-Lise Touya | Russia | United States |
| 2006 | Stanislav Pozdnyakov | Rebecca Ward | France | France |
| 2007 | Stanislav Pozdnyakov | Yelena Nechayeva | Hungary | France |
| 2008 | events not held | events not held | events not held | events not held |
| 2009 | Nicolas Limbach | Mariel Zagunis | Romania | Ukraine |
| 2010 | Won Woo-young | Mariel Zagunis | Russia | Russia |
| 2011 | Aldo Montano | Sofya Velikaya | Russia | Russia |
| 2012 | events not held | events not held | events not held | Russia |
| 2013 | Veniamin Reshetnikov | Olha Kharlan | Russia | Ukraine |
| 2014 | Nikolay Kovalev | Olha Kharlan | Germany | United States |
| 2015 | Aleksey Yakimenko | Sofya Velikaya | Italy | Russia |
| 2016 | events not held | events not held | Russia | event not held |
| 2017 | András Szatmári | Olha Kharlan | South Korea | Italy |
| 2018 | Kim Jung-hwan | Sofia Pozdniakova | South Korea | France |
| 2019 | Oh Sang-uk | Olha Kharlan | South Korea | Russia |
| 2022 | Áron Szilágyi | Misaki Emura | South Korea | Hungary |
| 2023 | Eli Dershwitz | Misaki Emura | Hungary | Hungary |

## Multiple gold medalists

Boldface denotes active fencers and highest medal count among all fencers (including these who not included in these tables) per type. The numbers in brackets denotes number of medals earned at the unofficial World Championships in 1921–1936 (known as European Championships back then) which are counted in overall statistics.

### Men
#### All events

| Rank | Fencer | Country | Weapon(s) | From | To | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| 1 | Aladár Gerevich | Hungary | Sabre & Foil | 1931 | 1959 | (5) 14 (5) | 2 | (1) 3 (1) | (6) 19 (6) |
| 2 | Edoardo Mangiarotti | Italy | Épée & Foil | 1937 | 1958 | 13 | 8 | 5 | 26 |
| 3 | Stanislav Pozdnyakov | Russia | Sabre | 1994 | 2007 | 10 | 5 | 2 | 17 |
| 4 | Vladimir Nazlymov | Soviet Union | Sabre | 1967 | 1979 | 10 | 3 | 2 | 15 |
| 5 | Alexandr Romankov | Soviet Union | Foil | 1974 | 1989 | 10 | 2 | 3 | 15 |
| 6 | Pál Kovács | Hungary | Sabre | 1933 | 1958 | (1) 10 (1) | 2 | – | (1) 12 (1) |
| 7 | Gustavo Marzi | Italy | Foil & Sabre | 1929 | 1938 | (5) 9 (5) | (10) 11 (10) | (1) 1 (1) | (16) 21 (16) |
| 8 | German Sveshnikov | Soviet Union | Foil | 1958 | 1969 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 12 |
| 9 | Giulio Gaudini | Italy | Foil & Sabre | 1929 | 1938 | (7) 8 (7) | (7) 7 (7) | (2) 2 (2) | (16) 17 (16) |
| 10 | Christian d'Oriola | France | Foil | 1947 | 1958 | 8 | 5 | – | 13 |

#### Individual events

| Rank | Fencer | Country | Weapon | From | To | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| 1 | Stanislav Pozdnyakov | Russia | Sabre | 1994 | 2007 | 5 | 3 | – | 8 |
| 2 | Alexandr Romankov | Soviet Union | Foil | 1974 | 1983 | 5 | 1 | – | 6 |
| 3 | Pavel Kolobkov | Soviet Union Russia | Épée | 1989 | 2005 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 7 |
| 4 | Christian d'Oriola | France | Foil | 1947 | 1955 | 4 | 1 | – | 5 |
| 5 | Peter Joppich | Germany | Foil | 2003 | 2010 | 4 | – | 1 | 5 |
| 5 | Grigory Kiriyenko | Soviet Union Russia | Sabre | 1989 | 1995 | 4 | – | 1 | 5 |
| 7 | Jerzy Pawłowski | Poland | Sabre | 1957 | 1971 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 8 |
| 8 | Sergei Golubitsky | Ukraine | Foil | 1993 | 1999 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 5 |
| 9 | Aladár Gerevich | Hungary | Sabre | 1935 | 1955 | (1) 3 (1) | 1 | – | (1) 4 (1) |
| 9 | Aleksey Nikanchikov | Soviet Union | Épée | 1966 | 1970 | 3 | 1 | – | 4 |

### Women
#### All events

| Rank | Fencer | Country | Weapon | From | To | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| 1 | Valentina Vezzali | Italy | Foil | 1994 | 2016 | 16 | 6 | 4 | 26 |
| 2 | Ilona Elek | Hungary | Foil | 1933 | 1956 | (5) 11 (5) | (1) 5 (1) | 2 | (6) 18 (6) |
| 3 | Arianna Errigo | Italy | Foil | 2009 | 2023 | 10 | 7 | 5 | 22 |
| 4 | Galina Gorokhova | Soviet Union | Foil | 1958 | 1971 | 9 | 6 | 1 | 16 |
| 5 | Alexandra Zabelina | Soviet Union | Foil | 1956 | 1971 | 9 | 6 | – | 15 |
| 6 | Giovanna Trillini | Italy | Foil | 1986 | 2007 | 9 | 5 | 6 | 20 |
| 7 | Valentina Sidorova (Burochkina) | Soviet Union | Foil | 1973 | 1986 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 12 |
| 8 | Sofya Velikaya | Russia | Sabre | 2004 | 2019 | 8 | 5 | 3 | 16 |
| 9 | Margit Elek | Hungary | Foil | 1933 | 1956 | (3) 8 (3) | (2) 4 (2) | 1 | (5) 13 (5) |
| 10 | Elena Belova (Novikova) | Soviet Union | Foil | 1969 | 1979 | 8 | 4 | – | 12 |

#### Individual events

| Rank | Fencer | Country | Weapon | From | To | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| 1 | Valentina Vezzali | Italy | Foil | 1994 | 2014 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 12 |
| 2 | Olha Kharlan | Ukraine | Sabre | 2009 | 2019 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 7 |
| 3 | Ilona Elek | Hungary | Foil | 1934 | 1955 | (2) 3 (2) | 2 | 1 | (2) 6 (2) |
| 4 | Ellen Müller-Preis | Austria | Foil | 1931 | 1950 | 3 | (1) 1 (1) | (1) 2 (1) | (2) 6 (2) |
| 5 | Inna Deriglazova | Russia | Foil | 2013 | 2019 | 3 | – | 1 | 4 |
| 5 | Cornelia Hanisch | West Germany | Foil | 1978 | 1985 | 3 | – | 1 | 4 |
| 7 | Helene Mayer | Germany | Foil | 1929 | 1937 | (2) 3 (2) | – | – | (2) 3 (2) |
| 8 | Arianna Errigo | Italy | Foil | 2009 | 2023 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 10 |
| 9 | Sofya Velikaya | Russia | Sabre | 2005 | 2019 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 6 |
| 10 | Mariel Zagunis | United States | Sabre | 2006 | 2014 | 2 | 3 | – | 5 |