In addition to training his son, Alexandre’s fingerprints on his son’s fencing

career are found even on the weapon in his son Sasha’s hands. Alexandre, during his time as a Soviet athlete, fenced with the sabre, one of three weapons used in competitive fencing along with the foil and epee. His son, Sasha, fences the sabre as well. Asked about his weapon, Sasha attributed his choice of the sabre to his personal taste.

“I originally started with the foil, but I didn’t like it,” Sasha said. “I thought that it was a little too slow paced. Foil is the regular starting weapon for all fencers, but if a fencer feels that the foil isn’t their fit, then a fencer branches off to either sabre or epee. I chose sabre around nine years old, and I’ve stayed with it ever since.”

“But yes, it could also be genetic,” Sasha conceded with a laugh.

After just one year at Harvard, Ryjik has already made a mark in his collegiate career. In his freshman season,  Ryjik took fourth place in the sabre at the Garret Open hosted by Penn State,  finished 10th at this year’s Ivy League Championships, and qualified for the 2012 NCAA Championships following a 12th-place finish at the NCAA Northeast Regional event held at Boston College.

“This season I’ve fenced a lot, and I’ve made a lot of contributions to the team,” Ryjik said. “So far though, I’m not entirely pleased with my results in competitions this year. But it is my freshman year.”

One of the difficulties Ryjik feels that he faced in his first year of collegiate fencing was the struggle to adjust to a new competitive format. Unlike the international, national, and club circuits, which feature 15-touch bout matches, collegiate fencing format centers around five-touch bout matches.

“The competition style is different, and that takes time adjusting to,” Ryjik said. “But this year, I’ve definitely started adjusting to the change in format and I think that by next year, I’ll be ready to take it to the next level.”

Despite the challenges faced by the future Pfoho resident in his rookie season, Ryjik has already won the respect of many of his current Harvard teammates, including current Crimson captain and 2012 NCAA Fencing Championship runner-up, Valentin Staller. For Staller, Ryjik has already emerged as a leader on the team.

“Sasha is a really great fencer,” Staller said. “He works extremely hard at it. He’s thoughtful about his fencing. So he’s fantastic to have around practice. Sasha keeps everyone accountable, which is really invaluable for a team.”

“Sometimes, individuals on teams are reluctant to give constructive criticism to teammates, but Sasha definitely has the interest of the team on his mind constantly,” Staller adds. “I think he could very well become a captain one day, but that obviously depends on how he conducts himself for years to come.”

While looking towards the immediate future and the Junior World Championships, Ryjik expressed his excitement and the deep honor he felt to have the opportunity to fence for the United States.

“What I really love about world championships is the opportunity to represent your country,” Ryjik said. “You feel great, you get those USA warm-up clothing, you walk around with your team, you think that you are hot stuff, and then you get to have fun with your teammates. Also, what I really love is the mutual respect that each of the national teams have for one another. Everyone understands the work that everyone has put in in order to make it there.”

“Even if I don’t do well, it won’t be the end of the world,” Ryjik adds. “Because I have next year. But this year, I’m definitely looking to have a strong finish. I’m going to put 100 percent of effort into it.”

—Staff writer Oluwatoni A. Campbell can be reached at oluwatoni.campbell@college.harvard.edu.