Former world champion Peter Joppich, 42, returns to German fencing three years after retiring. The Koblenz native will start as coach of the German women’s foil team and will complete the new three-person national coaching team at the base in Tauberbischofsheim in January. The German Fencing Association (DFeB) announced this on Friday.
Joppich, who is one of the most successful German fencers in recent memory with, among other things, five world titles and a team bronze medal at the 2012 Olympics in London, spoke of an “exciting task”. DFeB sports director Tobias Kirch is happy about the return: Joppich “fits perfectly into the new team and into our strategy of tying former top athletes to the association as coaches.” The four-time individual world champion Joppich will take on the coaching role together with Hannes Jetz and Andrea Baldini, who were hired last year. The aim is to “build a powerful team for Los Angeles 2028 in the medium term, consisting of established forces and young talent,” said Joppich.
The German fencing team, once a medal bank, had been unsuccessful at the last three Summer Games, with only two athletes qualifying for Paris. With Joppich’s commitment, the restructuring with a view to the games in LA has been completed, said Kirch: “Now the new structure has to be lived and worked. “Significant changes will then be noticeable in the medium term.”
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