Sept. 29, 2009

By Chris Harris
Athletic Communications Student Assistant

QUEENS, N.Y. - St. John's University fencers Daryl Homer and Dagmara Wozniak will represent the United States at the World Fencing Championships Sept. 30-Oct. 8. Both will join the team in Antalyo, Turkey to face the world's best competition.

This will be Homer's first year representing the United States and Wozniack's second. Last year Dagmara was an alternate in the Women's sabre division. This year she is one of five American women who will compete for a medal.

"Dagmara is a little bit more experienced than Daryl. She was at the Senior World Championships last year," assistant coach Boris Vaksman said. "We hope she'll make the top 16 and he'll make the top 32."

The two helped St. John's finish sixth overall at the 2009 NCAA Championships in March. Homer won the silver medal in the men's sabre competition and Wozniak received the bronze in the women's sabre the following day.

"To be a part of the U.S. senior team so early is really nice," said Homer. "And it would be great to bring home a medal."

Homer has been training for 25 hours per week, mostly concentrating on his footwork to prepare for the stiff competition he'll meet in Turkey.

Wozniak has high expectations of herself and believes she can medal in competition.

"I haven't been preparing as much as I wanted to because of classes," she said. "But I have really high expectations for myself. I really hope I can bring home a medal."

Both Wozniak and Homer started out in vastly different places, but trained together at a young age when they began taking lessons under St. John's head coach Yury Gelman.

"Yury is one of the best coaches in the country," Vaksman said. "He has helped inspire both Daryl and Dagmara to work hard. They recognized their own potential and have worked hard to become so successful. Regardless of how they do in Turkey, making the senior team is an accomplishment in itself."

After years of competing against each other in practice and cheering for each other as members of the same team, Wozniak and Homer share a mutual admiration.

"Daryl has a really good chance to perform well at the World Championships. He works really hard and has a good head on his shoulders," Wozniak said. "I think he uses his confidence to create a good presence on the strip."

"Dagmara is one of the toughest girls I know to fence," Homer said. "Dagmara and I have a lot of pride in our university. I'm really happy to represent St. John's."

The St. John's fencing team will officially begin its season Nov. 6 and both Homer and Wozniak will play a major role in the team's success. But before then, the two Red Storm fencers will look to make a mark on the International scene and bring a World Championship medal to the University.