Richard Kruse
{{Short description|British fencer (born 1983)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2021}}
{{Infobox fencer
| name = Richard Kruse
| image = Richard Kruse CIP 2015 IND t154616.jpg
| fullname = Richard Adam Kruse
| nationality = British
| residence = London, England
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1983|7|30|df=yes}}
| birth_place = London, England
| height = 1.89 m
| weight = 80 kg
| website =
| country = {{GBR2}}
| weapon = Foil
| hand = Right-handed
| club = ZFW
| natlcoach = Ziemowit Wojciechowski
| retired =
| fieranking = [https://fie.org/athletes/3256 Current Ranking]
| show-medals = yes
| medaltemplates =
{{MedalCompetition|World Championships}}
{{MedalSilver|2018 Wuxi|Individual}}
{{MedalCompetition|World Combat Games}}
{{MedalGold|2013 Saint Petersburg|Individual}}
{{MedalCompetition|European Games}}
{{MedalGold|2015 Baku|Team}}
{{MedalCompetition|European Championships}}
{{MedalSilver|2006 Izmir|Individual}}
{{MedalSilver|2009 Plovdiv|Individual}}
{{MedalBronze|2010 Leipzig|Individual}}
{{MedalBronze|2010 Leipzig|Team}}
{{MedalBronze|2012 Legnano|Individual}}
{{MedalBronze|2013 Zagreb|Team}}
{{MedalBronze|2016 Torun|Team}}
}}
Richard Kruse (born 30 July 1983) is a former British right-handed foil fencer and four-time Olympian.{{Cite web|title=INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website|url=http://fie.org/athletes/3256|access-date=2021-04-26|website=FIE.org}} In 2015, he was part of the Great Britain team that shocked Olympic champions Italy to win the first European Games gold in team foil, the first British gold medal in a team fencing event at World or European level for fifty years. He retired in 2021.{{Cite web|url=https://www.hamhigh.co.uk/sport/great-britain-fencing-richard-kruse-7970926|title=British fencing great Richard Kruse announces retirement|date=13 May 2021}}
Career
Kruse won his first international medal, a silver, at the 2001 European Under 20 Championships and in 2002 won gold in at the same event.{{cite news|title=Richard Kruse – Fencing|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/6935414.stm|accessdate=8 June 2011|date=7 August 2007|work=BBC Sport}}
He made his Olympic debut at the 2004 Games in Athens, Greece. Competing in the men's individual foil. He received a bye in the first round, beat China's Wang Haibin in round two and Dan Kellner of the United States in the third round before being defeated 8–15 by Andrea Cassarà in the quarter-finals.{{cite web|title=Richard Kruse Biography and Olympic Results|url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/kr/richard-kruse-1.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200418015835/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/kr/richard-kruse-1.html|archive-date=18 April 2020|publisher=sports-reference.com|accessdate=8 June 2011}} His eighth-place finish was the best by a British fencer since the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, when Fiona McIntosh was eighth in the women's foil,{{cite web|title=FIE List of Results Jeux Olympiques Barcelone 1992|url=http://www.fie.ch/Competitions/ResultsList.aspx?Key=256DF005E93D59AF44A8B9A795034CC7|publisher=fie.ch|accessdate=22 June 2013}} and the best by a British man since the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, when Bill Hoskyns won the silver medal in the individual épée.{{cite web|title=FIE List of Results Jeux Olympiques Tokyo 1964|url=http://www.fie.ch/Competitions/ResultsList.aspx?Key=6C896DD7B7F110A209085723B3E64D3B|publisher=fie.ch|accessdate=22 June 2013}} In 2006 Kruse won the silver medal in the men's foil event at the European Fencing Championships.{{cite web|title=Richard Kruse|url=http://www.britishfencing.com/international/wcp/richard-kruse/|publisher=British fencing|accessdate=8 June 2011}}
At the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China, Kruse again participated in the men's individual foil event. He defeated Virgil Sălișcan of Romania in the round of 32 but was eliminated at the last 16 stage after a 9–10 loss to Germany's Peter Joppich. He finished 14th.
In 2009 Kruse had his most successful season to date. He won a gold medal at the World Cup event in Copenhagen and a silver medal in Paris, then gold in Venice before winning a silver medal at the 2009 European Fencing Championships held in Plovdiv, Bulgaria. Kruse finished the season ranked fourth in the world.{{cite web|title=FIE Fencer Rankings and results Richard KRUSE|url=http://www.fie.ch/Competitions/FencerDetail.aspx?param=1E1E455D1B6996DB5DF2B34434C1E9CD|publisher=fie.ch|accessdate=22 June 2013}}
At the 2011 World Cup event in Seoul, South Korea, Kruse won the silver medal in the men's foil. he won five matches, including a 15–11 defeat of compatriot Laurence Halsted in the last eight to reach the final against Andrea Baldini of Italy. Baldini won the final by a single point, 15–14 to take the gold medal.{{cite news|title=British fencer Richard Kruse lands silver at World Cup|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/fencing/13485902.stm|accessdate=8 June 2011|date=21 May 2011|work=BBC Sport}}
Kruse is coached by former Polish Olympian turned British national Ziemowit Wojciechowski. He is also a coach for his ZFW fencing club.{{cite web|url=http://zfw-fencing.co.uk/coaches/richard-kruse|title=Richard Kruse|date=15 January 2015}}
In 2012, Richard Kruse won bronze at the Wakayama Grand Prix. Only 2 months later he claimed another bronze at the European Championships in Legnano, having been seeded 45th after the poule stages.{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/olympics/17897974|title=Richard Kruse|accessdate=13 June 2012}} At the London Olympics later that year, he finished 17th in the men's individual event, losing to Artur Akhmatkhuzin in the last 32.{{Cite web|title = foil individual men results - Fencing - London 2012 Olympics|url = http://www.olympic.org/olympic-results/london-2012/fencing/foil-individual-m|website = olympic.org|accessdate = 19 June 2015}} He was part of the British team that came 6th, losing to Italy in the quarter-finals and then beating France and losing to Russia in the ranking rounds.{{Cite web|title = foil team men results - Fencing - London 2012 Olympics|url = http://www.olympic.org/olympic-results/london-2012/fencing/foil-team-m|website = olympic.org|accessdate = 19 June 2015}}
In 2016 Kruse again attended the Olympic Games in Rio. He placed fourth overall in the Men's Individual Foil, losing to Timur Safin of Russia in the Bronze Medal Match.{{Cite web|url=https://olympics.com/en/olympic-games/rio-2016/results/fencing/foil-individual-men|title = Rio 2016 foil individual men Results - Olympic fencing}}
In 2018 Kruse won silver in the individual men's foil event at the World Championships in Wuxi, China.
After winning gold at the Prince Takamodo World Cup in Tokyo, on 26 January 2019, he was ranked number one in the world, the first British fencer to achieve that position.{{cite web |title=Kruse wins at FIE Foil World Cup in Tokyo to become Britain's first world number one |url=https://www.insidethegames.biz/articles/1074716/kruse-wins-at-fie-foil-world-cup-in-tokyo-to-become-britains-first-world-number-one |website=insidethegames.biz |accessdate=26 January 2019 |date=26 January 2019}}
Kruse retired in May 2021. He now works as a fencing coach for Salle Paul Fencing Club in Hendon. When he retired in 2021, he had been a six times British fencing champion, winning six foil titles at the British Fencing Championships, from 2001 to 2018.{{cite web|url=https://www.britishfencing.com/uploads/files/british_champions.pdf |title=British Champions |website=British Fencing |access-date=28 October 2022}}
Medal Record
= World Championship =
| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
!Year ! style="width:17em" |Location ! style="width:12em" |Event !Position |
| 2018
| rowspan="1" align="left" |{{flagicon|CHN}} Wuxi, China |Individual Men's Foil | bgcolor="silver" |2nd{{Cite web|title=INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website|url=http://fie.org/competitions/2018/244?tab=results|access-date=2021-04-26|website=FIE.org}} |
= European Championship =
= Grand Prix =
= World Cup =
| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
!Date ! style="width:17em" |Location ! style="width:12em" |Event !Position |
| 2008-01-05
| rowspan="1" align="left" |{{flagicon|DEN}} Copenhagen, Denmark |Individual Men's Foil | bgcolor="caramel" |3rd{{Cite web|title=INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website|url=http://fie.org/competitions/2008/132?tab=results|access-date=2021-04-28|website=FIE.org}} |
| 2009-01-17
| rowspan="1" align="left" |{{flagicon|DEN}} Copenhagen, Denmark |Individual Men's Foil |
| 2010-01-16
| rowspan="1" align="left" |{{flagicon|DEN}} Copenhagen, Denmark |Individual Men's Foil |
| 2010-05-09
| rowspan="1" align="left" |{{flagicon|KOR}} Seoul, South Korea |Individual Men's Foil | bgcolor="silver" |2nd{{Cite web|title=INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website|url=http://fie.org/competitions/2010/138?tab=results|access-date=2021-04-28|website=FIE.org}} |
| 2011-05-10
| rowspan="1" align="left" |{{flagicon|KOR}} Seoul, South Korea |Individual Men's Foil | bgcolor="silver" |2nd{{Cite web|title=INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website|url=http://fie.org/competitions/2011/138?tab=results|access-date=2021-04-28|website=FIE.org}} |
| 2014-04-25
| rowspan="1" align="left" |{{flagicon|KOR}} Seoul, South Korea |Individual Men's Foil | bgcolor="caramel" |3rd{{Cite web|title=INTERNATIONAL FENCING FEDERATION - The International Fencing Federation official website|url=http://fie.org/competitions/2014/138?tab=results|access-date=2021-04-28|website=FIE.org}} |
| 2017-10-20
| rowspan="1" align="left" |{{flagicon|EGY}} Cairo, Egypt |Individual Men's Foil |
| 2018-11-09
| rowspan="1" align="left" |{{flagicon|GER}} Bonn, Germany |Individual Men's Foil |
| 2019-01-25
| rowspan="1" align="left" |{{flagicon|JPN}} Tokyo, Japan |Individual Men's Foil |
References
{{reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kruse, Richard}}
Category:British male foil fencers
Category:Olympic fencers for Great Britain
Category:Fencers at the 2004 Summer Olympics
Category:Fencers at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Category:Fencers at the 2012 Summer Olympics
Category:Fencers at the 2015 European Games
Category:European Games medalists in fencing
Category:European Games gold medalists for Great Britain