Wikipedia

Alexander Massialas

Alexander Chen Massialas (Chinese: 陳海翔; pinyin: Chén Hǎixiáng; /ˌmɑːsiˈɑːlɪs/ MAH-see-AH-liss; born April 20, 1994)[5] is an American right-handed foil fencer.[6] He is a two-time NCAA champion, 11-time team Pan American champion, two-time individual Pan American champion, and 2019 team world champion who is currently the fencing coach for the Stanford Cardinal.

Alexander Massialas
Massialas at the 2013 World Fencing Championships
Personal information
Born (1994-04-20) April 20, 1994 (age 30)
San Francisco, California, U.S.
Height6 ft 2 in (188 cm)[1][2]
Weight185 lb (84 kg)[1]
Websitealexandermassialas.com
Sport
Country United States
WeaponFoil
Handright-handed
National coachGreg Massialas
FIE rankingNo. 8 (Men's foil)[3][4]
Medal record
Men's foil
Representing the  United States
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 2016 Rio de Janeiro Individual
Bronze medal – third place 2016 Rio de Janeiro Team
Bronze medal – third place 2020 Tokyo Team
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 2019 Budapest Team
Silver medal – second place 2013 Budapest Team
Silver medal – second place 2015 Moscow Individual
Silver medal – second place 2017 Leipzig Team
Silver medal – second place 2018 Wuxi Team
Silver medal – second place 2022 Cairo Team
Pan American Championships
Gold medal – first place 2009 San Salvador Team
Gold medal – first place 2010 San José Team
Gold medal – first place 2011 Reno, Nevada Team
Gold medal – first place 2012 Cancún Team
Gold medal – first place 2013 Cartagena Team
Gold medal – first place 2015 Santiago Team
Gold medal – first place 2016 Panama City Individual
Gold medal – first place 2016 Panama City Team
Gold medal – first place 2017 Montreal Team
Gold medal – first place 2018 Havana Team
Gold medal – first place 2019 Toronto Team
Gold medal – first place 2022 Asunción Individual
Gold medal – first place 2022 Asunción Team
Gold medal – first place 2023 Lima Team
Gold medal – first place 2024 Lima Team
Silver medal – second place 2011 Reno, Nevada Individual
Silver medal – second place 2012 Cancún Individual
Silver medal – second place 2014 San José Individual
Silver medal – second place 2015 Santiago Individual
Silver medal – second place 2017 Montreal Individual
Bronze medal – third place 2010 San José Individual
Bronze medal – third place 2018 Havana Individual
Bronze medal – third place 2019 Toronto Individual
Bronze medal – third place 2023 Lima Individual
Bronze medal – third place 2024 Lima Individual
Youth Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 2010 Singapore Individual
Alexander Massialas
Traditional Chinese陳海翔
Simplified Chinese陈海翔
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinChén Hǎixiáng
Bopomofoㄔㄣˊㄏㄞˇㄒㄧㄤˊ
Southern Min
Hokkien POJTîn Hái-siông

A three-time Olympian, Massialas first competed in the 2012 London Olympic Games, where he was the youngest male athlete representing the United States.[7] He later won the Olympic silver medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics Individual Men's Foil competition and is a two-time team Olympic bronze medalist, first at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro for men's team foil and then at the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics for men's team foil.

Early life and education

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Massialas was born and raised in San Francisco, California,[8] to a Taiwanese American mother and a father of Greek descent.[9] His mother, Chwan-Hui Chen,[10] immigrated from Taiwan to attend graduate school in the United States, where she studied piano and pedagogy.[11][12] Massialas' maternal grandfather ran a Taiwanese company, King Chong Hong (Chinese: 慶昌行), which imported Asian ingredients and utensils to the U.S.[13] In 2021, Massialas recalled in an interview, "I have always been extremely proud of my Taiwanese heritage and I jump at any opportunity to return to Taiwan".[13]

Massialas' father, Greg Massialas, fenced for the United States in the 1984 and 1988 Summer Olympics, and has coached the American national foil team. Massialas' sister, Sabrina, is also an Olympic fencer.

From pre-kindergarten to eighth grade,[13] Massialas was enrolled in the Chinese American International School in San Francisco, California, where he began fencing as a child.[14] After graduating from the Drew School,[14] he attended Stanford University, where he earned a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in mechanical engineering in 2017.[15] In July 2023, Massialas worked at MHC Engineers, a mechanical engineering firm owned by his maternal uncle, Meng Hsiu-Chen.[7]

Fencing career

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After he showed spontaneous interest at an early age, his father made him wait until he was seven years old to begin training.[16]

An athletic child, Massialas played soccer and made the basketball and the swimming teams at Drew School. He enrolled at Stanford University on a fencing scholarship in the fall of 2012.[17] He closed his freshman season by winning the 2013 NCAA title in individual men's foil.[18] He repeated this feat in 2015, after falling to David Willette in 2014's semifinal round.[19][20]

In July 2024, Massialas was named the head fencing coach for the Stanford Cardinal.[15]

Medal record

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Massialas at the individual event of the 2015 Challenge International de Paris

Olympic Games

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Year Location Event Position
2016   Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Individual Men's Foil 2nd[21]
2016   Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Team Men's Foil 3rd[22]
2021   Tokyo, Japan Team Men's Foil 3rd[23]

World Championship

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Year Location Event Position
2013   Budapest, Hungary Team Men's Foil 2nd[24]
2015   Moscow, Russia Individual Men's Foil 2nd[25]
2017   Leipzig, Germany Team Men's Foil 2nd[26]
2018   Wuxi, China Team Men's Foil 2nd[27]
2019   Budapest, Hungary Team Men's Foil 1st[28]
2022   Cairo, Egypt Team Men's Foil 2nd[29]

Grand Prix

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Date Location Event Position
2013-03-04   St. Petersburg, Russia Individual Men's Foil 2nd[30]
2014-05-03   Tokyo, Japan Individual Men's Foil 3rd[31]
2015-03-13   Havana, Cuba Individual Men's Foil 2nd[32]
2016-06-03   Shanghai, China Individual Men's Foil 1st[33]
2016-12-02   Turin, Italy Individual Men's Foil 2nd[34]
2017-03-17   Long Beach, California Individual Men's Foil 2nd[35]
2017-12-01   Turin, Italy Individual Men's Foil 1st[36]
2020-02-07   Turin, Italy Individual Men's Foil 2nd[37]
2023-05-19   Shanghai, China Individual Men's Foil 1st[38]

World Cup

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Date Location Event Position
2010-05-29   Montreal, Canada Individual Men's Foil 3rd[39]
2011-05-20   Seoul, South Korea Individual Men's Foil 3rd[40]
2012-01-27   Paris, France Individual Men's Foil 3rd[41]
2013-02-22   A Coruña, Spain Individual Men's Foil 3rd[42]
2014-04-25   Seoul, South Korea Individual Men's Foil 1st[43]
2015-01-16   Paris, France Individual Men's Foil 3rd[44]
2015-11-06   Tokyo, Japan Individual Men's Foil 1st[45]
2017-01-20   Paris, France Individual Men's Foil 1st[46]
2018-02-09   Bonn, Germany Individual Men's Foil 2nd[47]
2019-03-01   Cairo, Egypt Individual Men's Foil 3rd[48]
2020-02-21   Cairo, Egypt Individual Men's Foil 3rd[49]
2023-05-07   Acapulco, Mexico Team Men's Foil 1st[50]
2023-11-10   Istanbul, Turkey Individual Men's Foil 1st[51]
2023-12-09   Tokoname, Japan Individual Men's Foil 1st[52]
2024-11-22   Tunis, Tunisia Individual Men's Foil 1st[53]
2024-11-24   Tunis, Tunisia Team Men's Foil 2nd[54]
2024-12-06   Takasaki, Japan Individual Men's Foil 3rd[55]
2024-12-08   Takasaki, Japan Team Men's Foil 2nd[56]
2025-01-10   Paris, France Individual Men's Foil 2nd[57]
2025-01-12   Paris, France Team Men's Foil 3rd[58]

Pan American Championship

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Year Location Event Position
2009   San Salvador, El Salvador Team Men's Foil 1st[59]
2010   San José, Costa Rica Individual Men's Foil 3rd[60]
2010   San José, Costa Rica Team Men's Foil 1st[61]
2011   Reno, Nevada Individual Men's Foil 2nd[62]
2011   Reno, Nevada Team Men's Foil 1st[63]
2012   Cancún, Mexico Individual Men's Foil 2nd[64]
2012   Cancún, Mexico Team Men's Foil 1st[65]
2013   Cartagena, Colombia Team Men's Foil 1st[66]
2014   San José, Costa Rica Individual Men's Foil 2nd[67]
2015   Santiago, Chile Individual Men's Foil 2nd[68]
2015   Santiago, Chile Team Men's Foil 1st[69]
2016   Panama City, Panama Individual Men's Foil 1st[70]
2016   Panama City, Panama Team Men's Foil 1st[71]
2017   Montreal, Canada Individual Men's Foil 2nd[72]
2017   Montreal, Canada Team Men's Foil 1st[73]
2018   Havana, Cuba Individual Men's Foil 3rd[74]
2018   Havana, Cuba Team Men's Foil 1st[75]
2019   Toronto, Canada Individual Men's Foil 3rd[76]
2019   Toronto, Canada Team Men's Foil 1st[77]
2022   Asunción, Paraguay Individual Men's Foil 1st[78]
2022   Asunción, Paraguay Team Men's Foil 1st[79]
2023   Lima, Peru Individual Men's Foil 3rd[80]
2023   Lima, Peru Team Men's Foil 1st[81]
2024   Lima, Peru Individual Men's Foil 3rd[82]
2024   Lima, Peru Team Men's Foil 1st[83]

See also

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References

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  8. ^ "Alexander Massialas". TeamUSA.org. United States Olympic Committee. Archived from the original on April 25, 2012.
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