A teenage fencing prodigy from Weehawken is making a name for herself on both the national and international stage.
With unmatched accuracy and precision, Lola Possick looks like a seasoned professional fencer. It is almost easy to forget that she is only 15 years old.
“I really love the creativity of it, because when you’re younger you do a lot of drills and repetitive foot work. But after you get off that base, you can take it where you want to go and come up with your own ideas and express yourself through it,” she says.
Possick is ranked No. 1 in the world among under-17 fencers in Women’s Saber. She won four national championships and one world cup before the COVID-19 shutdown. This past weekend she made her return to international competition in Egypt at the World Championships.
“It took a lot of trial and error to come up with how I would approach competitions, how I would think during them. But now I’ve just decided that whenever I go to one, I have to fence to have fun and try not to think about the external pressure,” Possick says.
Possick attends Kent Place High School, but trains with former National Team member Aleksander Ochocki at his Advanced Fencing and Fitness Academy in Garwood.
“For her age, to be doing what she's doing is very impressive. Not just in the country, but on the world stage. Not many people can do that,” Ochocki says.
Possick says that her dream moving forward is to become an Olympian – something that she is already on her way toward. She was named to the 2021 under-17 U.S. National Team.
“It’s really exciting to be in the process of getting there…it’s all really exciting, even though this is new for me,” she says.
Possick missed the podium at the World Championships last weekend. She will now turn her attention to a senior competition with fellow national team members in Dallas, Texas.