Fencer hopeful of success on debut in university competition

Rajan Rai may be preparing to make his BUCS Nationals debut later this month, but the Redbridge fencer insists he has thoughts only on one thing – returning with a gold medal around his neck.

A first-year psychology student at King’s College London, Rai will join the country’s finest athletes in Sheffield from February 19-21 for the largest annual multi-sport event in the UK.

The Newham Swords member has been involved in the sport since the age of eight after being inspired by the film Zorro and now regularly represents Great Britain on the international stage.

And with the European Junior Championships in Novi Sad, Serbia just around the corner after BUCS Nationals, the former Beal High School pupil, who specialises in the foil discipline, admits Sheffield will give him the perfect opportunity to fine-tune his preparations.

“This will be the first time that I’ve been to BUCS but I’m really excited,” said the 19-year-old. “I’m definitely going there to try and win no doubt about it.

“The competition comes just before the European Championships so for me it’s a great opportunity to get focused, get used to that competitive environment and sharpen my mind.

“I’ve been working a lot on my strength and condition work and feel like I’m in good shape. I had a competition out in France recently and I was happy with how that went.

“This is my last year at junior level before moving up to seniors so I want to go out on a high at the junior European Championships, while there are also the junior World Championships in France in April which is another target.”

British Universities & Colleges Sport (BUCS) is the national governing body for Higher Education (HE) sport in the UK, representing more than 150 institutions. Covering 52 sports, BUCS aids grass roots participation through to supporting aspiring elite athletes en route to Commonwealth or Olympic Games www.bucs.org.uk