USA Fencing has announced that Potomac’s Hadley Husisian ’22, now a student at Princeton, will represent the United States in the épée competition at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics.
In fencing, the path to the Olympics is not straightforward. Unlike sports with qualifying events, fencing relies on a complex points system accumulated over a year of competitions. Hadley earned her place on the American team through consistent performances in both domestic and international events.
At Princeton, Hadley was named a 2023 first-team All-Ivy selection, the 2023 Ivy Épée Champion, and a 2022-23 All-American Fencer. She won back-to-back Junior Épée World Championships in 2022 and 2023, making her the first athlete, male or female, to repeat as a Junior Épée World Champion.
Hadley’s fencing journey was inspired by the portrayal of fencing on the Nickelodeon show iCarly which she watched when she was in elementary school. Hadley was drawn to the sport’s elegance and strategy. “I pretty quickly fell in love with it and wanted to devote all my time to it.”
Hadley loves fencing’s individualism. Unlike team sports, fencing places the spotlight solely on the fencer’s performance: “I like having my wins and losses be dependent on my performance,” she stated. As she does not come from an “athletic background,” she enjoys how fencing focuses on the player’s “strategy and style matchup.”
Balancing the rigorous demands of fencing with academics has been a constant challenge. Like many high-level athletes, Hadley faced the dilemma of juggling intense training schedules with school commitments. She decided to take a year off from school to prepare for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
The prospect of competing at the Olympics in Paris, the birthplace of fencing, evokes a mix of excitement and nerves for Hadley. “I really haven’t been allowing myself to think about that too much because I didn’t want to jinx things this year,” she admits.
Looking beyond the Olympics, Hadley’s plans include returning to school for her sophomore year. Reflecting on her journey, she takes pride in the hard work and discipline that have brought her to the summit of her sport. Her advice to her younger self echoes a lesson learned through years of perseverance: “Learning how to adjust to losses, use them as motivation, and believe that goals will be achieved with continued effort.”
