# Fencing at the 1912 Summer Olympics – Men's sabre

The men's sabre was a fencing event held as part of the Fencing at the 1912 Summer Olympics programme. It was the fifth appearance of the event.
The Hungarian fencers dominated the competition, with all 12 advancing to the semifinals. In 2 of the 4 semifinals, the Hungarians took the top three places. In a third, Hungarian fencers took the two qualifying spots while the third Hungarian did not start. In the remaining semifinal, Nedo Nadi of Italy placed second to become the only non-Hungarian fencer to advance to the final (the three Hungarians took first, third, and fourth in that semifinal).
The final consisted of 7 Hungarian fencers and Nadi. Nadi took fifth. Jenő Fuchs successfully defended his 1908 Olympic title, the first man to win multiple medals in the sabre. Béla Békessy took silver and Ervin Mészáros earned bronze.

## Background

This was the fifth appearance of the event, which is the only fencing event to have been held at every Summer Olympics. Four of the eight finalists from 1908 returned: gold medalist Jenő Fuchs, silver medalist Béla Zulawszky, fifth-place finisher Péter Tóth, and sixth-place finisher Lajos Werkner, all of Hungary. Hungary was dominant in the sabre; Fuchs' 1908 victory started a run that lasted through 1964 in which the only Games that Hungary did not win the event was the one to which the nation was not invited (1920).
Russia and Sweden each made their debut in the men's sabre. Austria made its fourth appearance in the event, most of any nation, having missed only the 1904 Games in St. Louis.

## Competition format

The competition was held over four rounds. In each round, each pool held a round-robin. European sabre rules at the time used a larger target area than the post-World War I standard. In 1896, 1900, and 1908, the target area had been the whole body; the 1912 rules reduced that to "all body parts, located above the horizontal line passing through the crotch". (The 1904 competition used the American rules which became the standard now used.) Double hits were possible under the rules of the time.
* First round: 16 pools of between 3 and 5 fencers each. The top 3 fencers in each pool advanced to the quarterfinals.
* Quarterfinals: 8 pools of 6 fencers each (before withdrawals). The top 3 fencers in each pool advanced to the semifinals.
* Semifinals: 4 pools of 6 fencers each. The top 2 fencers in each pool advanced to the final.
* Final: 1 pool of 8 fencers.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Round |
| Tuesday, 16 July 1912 | 9:00 12:00 15:00 | Round 1 pools A–D Round 1 pools E–H Round 1 pools I–L |
| Wednesday, 17 July 1912 | 9:00 12:00 15:00 | Round 1 pools M–P Quarterfinals pools A–D Quarterfinals pools E–H |
| Thursday, 18 July 1912 | 9:00 14:00 | Semifinals Final |

## Results
### Round 1
#### Pool A

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Wins | Notes |
| 1 | Giovanni Benfratello | Italy | 3 | Q |
| 2 | Lajos Werkner | Hungary | 2 | Q |
| 3 | Vladimir Danich | Russian Empire | 1 | Q |
| 4 | Gustaf Armgarth | Sweden | 0 | |

#### Pool B

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Wins | Notes |
| 1 | Julius Lichtenfels | Germany | 3 | Q |
| 1 | Béla Zulavsky | Hungary | 3 | Q |
| 3 | Vladimir Andreyev | Russian Empire | 2 | Q |
| 4 | Friedrich Golling | Austria | 2 | |
| 5 | Helge Werner | Sweden | 0 | |

#### Pool C

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Wins | Notes |
| 1 | Karl Münich | Austria | 3 | Q |
| 2 | Hans Thomson | Germany | 2 | Q |
| 3 | Jens Berthelsen | Denmark | 1 | Q |
| 4 | Boris Nepokupnoy | Russian Empire | 0 | |

#### Pool D

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Wins | Notes |
| 1 | Edoardo Alaimo | Italy | 4 | Q |
| 2 | Oluf Berntsen | Denmark | 2 | Q |
| 2 | Albert Bogen | Austria | 2 | Q |
| 4 | Zdeněk Bárta | Bohemia | 1 | |
| 4 | Aleksandr Shkylev | Russian Empire | 1 | |

#### Pool E

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Wins | Notes |
| 1 | Charles Vanderbyl | Great Britain | 3 | Q |
| 2 | Josef Javůrek | Bohemia | 3 | Q |
| 3 | Josef Puhm | Austria | 2 | Q |
| 4 | Carl-Gustaf Klerck | Sweden | 1 | |
| 4 | Georgy Zakyrich | Russian Empire | 1 | |

#### Pool F

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Wins | Notes |
| 1 | Einar Levison | Denmark | 3 | Q |
| 2 | Alfred Martin | Great Britain | 2 | Q |
| 3 | Anatoly Timofeyev | Russian Empire | 1 | Q |
| 4 | Johannes Kolling | Netherlands | 0 | |

#### Pool G

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Wins | Notes |
| 1 | Béla Békessy | Hungary | 3 | Q |
| 2 | Franz Dereani | Austria | 1 | Q |
| 3 | William Marsh | Great Britain | 1 | Q |
| 4 | Konstantin Vaterkampf | Russian Empire | 1 | |

#### Pool H

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Wins | Notes |
| 1 | Hendrik de Iongh | Netherlands | 3 | Q |
| 1 | Péter Tóth | Hungary | 3 | Q |
| 3 | Sven Nordenström | Sweden | 2 | Q |
| 4 | Douglas Godfree | Great Britain | 1 | |
| 4 | Aleksandr Mordovin | Russian Empire | 1 | |

#### Pool I

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Wins | Notes |
| 1 | Nikolay Kuznetsov | Russian Empire | — | Q |
| 1 | Ervin Mészáros | Hungary | — | Q |
| 1 | Georg Stöhr | Germany | — | Q |

#### Pool J

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Wins | Notes |
| 1 | Jenő Fuchs | Hungary | — | Q |
| 1 | Apollon Guiber von Greifenfels | Russian Empire | — | Q |
| 1 | Carl Personne | Sweden | — | Q |

#### Poolol K

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Wins | Notes |
| 1 | Boris Arsenyev | Russian Empire | — | Q |
| 1 | Bertalan Dunay | Hungary | — | Q |
| 1 | Ernest zu Hohenlohe | Austria | — | Q |

#### Pool L

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Wins | Notes |
| 1 | Zoltán Schenker | Hungary | 3 | Q |
| 2 | Friedrich Schwarz | Germany | 2 | Q |
| 3 | Harry Butterworth | Great Britain | 1 | Q |
| 4 | Pavel Filatov | Russian Empire | 1 | |

#### Pool M

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Wins | Notes |
| 1 | Francesco Pietrasanta | Italy | 3 | Q |
| 2 | Pál Pajzs | Hungary | 1 | Q |
| 3 | Alfred Syson | Great Britain | 1 | Q |
| 4 | Walter Gate | South Africa | 1 | |

#### Pool N

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Wins | Notes |
| 1 | Oszkár Gerde | Hungary | 3 | Q |
| 2 | Nedo Nadi | Italy | 2 | Q |
| 3 | Albertson van zo Post | United States | 1 | Q |
| 4 | Archibald Corble | Great Britain | 0 | |

#### Pool O

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Wins | Notes |
| 1 | Dezső Földes | Hungary | — | Q |
| 1 | Alfred Keene | Great Britain | — | Q |
| 1 | Alfred Sauer | United States | — | Q |

#### Pool P

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Wins | Notes |
| 1 | László Berti | Hungary | 3 | Q |
| 2 | Aristide Pontanani | Italy | 2 | Q |
| 3 | Edward Brookfield | Great Britain | 1 | Q |
| 4 | Gunnar Lindholm | Sweden | 0 | |

### Quarterfinals
#### Quarterfinal A

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Losses | Notes |
| 1 | László Berti | Hungary | 0 | Q |
| 2 | Bertalan Dunay | Hungary | 1 | Q |
| 3 | Vladimir Andreyev | Russian Empire | 2 | Q |
| 4 | Giovanni Benfratello | Italy | 3 | |
| 5 | Einar Levison | Denmark | 4 | |
| 5 | Georg Stöhr | Germany | 4 | |

#### Quarterfinal B

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Losses | Notes |
| 1 | Lajos Werkner | Hungary | 0 | Q |
| 2 | Oszkár Gerde | Hungary | 1 | Q |
| 3 | Anatoly Timofeyev | Russian Empire | 2 | Q |
| 4 | Harry Butterworth | Great Britain | 3 | |
| 4 | Alfred Sauer | United States | 3 | |
| — | Albert Bogen | Austria | DNS | |

#### Quarterfinal C

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Losses | Notes |
| 1 | Ervin Mészáros | Hungary | 0 | Q |
| 2 | Friedrich Schwarz | Germany | 1 | Q |
| 3 | William Marsh | Great Britain | 2 | Q |
| 4 | Ernest zu Hohenlohe | Austria | 3 | |
| — | Edoardo Alaimo | Italy | DNS | |
| — | Vladimir Danich | Russian Empire | DNS | |

#### Quarterfinal D

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Losses | Notes |
| 1 | Béla Békessy | Hungary | 1 | Q |
| 1 | Dezső Földes | Hungary | 1 | Q |
| 3 | Oluf Berntsen | Denmark | 2 | Q |
| 4 | Nikolay Kuznetsov | Russian Empire | 3 | |
| 4 | Aristide Pontenani | Italy | 3 | |
| — | Karl Münich | Austria | DNS | |

#### Quarterfinal E

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Losses | Notes |
| 1 | Zoltán Schenker | Hungary | 1 | Q |
| 2 | Apollon Guiber von Greifenfels | Russian Empire | 2 | Q |
| 2 | Charles Vanderbyl | Great Britain | 2 | Q |
| 4 | Hans Thomson | Germany | 2 | |
| 5 | Edward Brookfield | Great Britain | 3 | |
| — | Franz Dereani | Austria | DNS | |

#### Quarterfinal F

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Losses | Notes |
| 1 | Jenő Fuchs | Hungary | 0 | Q |
| 1 | Alfred Syson | Great Britain | 0 | Q |
| 3 | Boris Arsenyev | Russian Empire | 2 | Q |
| 4 | Jens Berthelsen | Denmark | 3 | |
| — | Hendrik de Iongh | Netherlands | DNS | |
| — | Josef Javůrek | Bohemia | DNS | |

#### Quarterfinal G

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Losses | Notes |
| 1 | Nedo Nadi | Italy | 1 | Q |
| 1 | Pál Pajzs | Hungary | 1 | Q |
| 3 | Béla Zulavsky | Hungary | 2 | Q |
| 4 | Alfred Keene | Great Britain | 2 | |
| 5 | Sven Nordenström | Sweden | 4 | |
| — | Josef Puhm | Austria | DNS | |

#### Quarterfinal H

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Losses | Notes |
| 1 | Péter Tóth | Hungary | 0 | Q |
| 2 | Julius Lichtenels | Germany | 1 | Q |
| 2 | Carl Personne | Sweden | 1 | Q |
| 4 | Francesco Pietrasanta | Italy | 1 | |
| 5 | Alfred Martin | Great Britain | 4 | |
| — | Albertson van zo Post | United States | DNS | |

### Semifinals
#### Semifinal A

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Wins | Notes |
| 1 | Béla Békessy | Hungary | 4 | Q |
| 2 | Nedo Nadi | Italy | 3 | Q |
| 3 | Béla Zulavsky | Hungary | 2 | |
| 4 | Bertalan Dunay | Hungary | 1 | |
| 5 | Friedrich Schwarz | Germany | 0 | |
| — | Anatoly Timofeyev | Russian Empire | DNS | |

#### Semifinal B

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Wins | Notes |
| 1 | Péter Tóth | Hungary | 2 | Q |
| 2 | Jenő Fuchs | Hungary | 1 | Q |
| 3 | Alfred Syson | Great Britain | 0 | |
| — | Vladimir Andreyev | Russian Empire | DNS | |
| — | Oszkár Gerde | Hungary | DNS | |
| — | Julius Lichtenfels | Germany | DNS | |

#### Semifinal C

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Wins | Notes |
| 1 | Ervin Mészáros | Hungary | 5 | Q |
| 2 | Dezső Földes | Hungary | 4 | Q |
| 3 | Pál Pajzs | Hungary | 3 | |
| 4 | Charles Vanderbyl | Great Britain | 2 | |
| 5 | Boris Arsenyev | Russian Empire | 1 | |
| 6 | Carl Personne | Sweden | 0 | |

#### Semifinal D

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Wins | Notes |
| 1 | Lajos Werkner | Hungary | 5 | Q |
| 2 | Zoltán Schenker | Hungary | 4 | Q |
| 3 | László Berti | Hungary | 3 | |
| 4 | Apollon Guiber von Greifenfels | Russian Empire | 2 | |
| 5 | William Marsh | Great Britain | 1 | |
| 6 | Oluf Berntsen | Denmark | 0 | |

### Final

| Rank | Fencer | Nation | Wins | Losses | TF | TA |
| | Jenő Fuchs | Hungary | 6 | 1 | 18 | 10 |
| | Béla Békessy | Hungary | 5 | 2 | 17 | 11 |
| | Ervin Mészáros | Hungary | 5 | 2 | 17 | 12 |
| 4 | Zoltán Schenker | Hungary | 4 | 3 | 17 | 13 |
| 5 | Nedo Nadi | Italy | 4 | 3 | 16 | 17 |
| 6 | Péter Tóth | Hungary | 2 | 5 | 12 | 17 |
| 7 | Lajos Werkner | Hungary | 1 | 6 | 13 | 19 |
| 8 | Dezső Földes | Hungary | 1 | 6 | 9 | 20 |