A 16-year-old Cambridge resident has become one of the nation’s top-ranked fencers. Now she’s preparing for the world championships next month in Brazil.
Natalya Cafasso ranks first in the United States in both the junior (under 20) and cadet (under 17) categories in épée. Épée is the only blade in fencing for which the whole body is the target, unlike the two other blades, foil and sabre.
For her, competing at the 2026 International Fencing Federation Junior & Cadet World Fencing Championships is a dream come true. She has been fencing since she was 6 years old and competing since she was 13. “It feels amazing. I never thought I would be in this position,” said Cafasso, a sophomore at Cambridge Rindge & Latin School. “Representing USA is a big deal, and it feels amazing that I can represent my country at the highest level.”
On top of her dominance in the U.S. junior and cadet categories, Cafasso is ranked seventh in the world in junior women’s épée and 13th in the U.S. in senior women’s épée.
Even with her experience, the opportunity to represent the U.S. at one of the highest levels of fencing is a daunting task. Regardless of the pressure, Cafasso wants to stay focused.
“It’s always a lot of pressure, because you travel all that way for one event, but I try not to think about it at all. I try to be present in the moment,” she said. “The results don’t matter as much to me. Obviously they matter, but it’s not like hanging above me, like I need to do this.”
Cafasso had a rocky start to the season, but over the last five months she found success. She has reached the podium in her last four competitions, bringing home a silver and three bronze medals.
She sees this run as a “butterfly effect.” Before her four medals, she narrowly made the U.S. roster for the junior world cup in Hong Kong in November.
“If I never qualified for that competition, none of this would have happened,” said Cafasso. “I think that’s really interesting to look back on, because my whole entire life would have been different if I didn’t make that one competition.”
Even though she placed 22nd in the competition, just having the opportunity to be on the team and compete showed her she belonged.
Daniel Hondor, Cafasso’s coach at the Olympia Fencing Center, noticed a shift in her attitude after the competition in Hong Kong. Ever since then, her game has taken a step up.
“Before the first one, she was, ‘Am I ready for this? Do I belong there? Do I not belong there?’ and once she actually made the first bronze in Spain, she got the confidence and maturity that she needed,” Hondor said. “Once she convinced herself that she belonged, she mastered it.”
Hondor and Cafasso have put in countless hours of work and training to get her to where she is. Cafasso spends five to six days a week at the Olympia Fencing Center working on her craft.
“There’s not a secret. It’s hard work, and she’s a pretty smart kid, which matters a lot,” Hondor said. “It’s pretty much high speed chess, and she understands it.”
Aside from fencing, Cafasso holds a 4.0 GPA at CRLS. When she’s not competing, training or traveling, she spends her time studying and catching up on work. She often studies on overnight flights and in the airport.
Regardless of the outcome in Rio, Cafasso is striving for an even bigger goal in her future – the Olympics in 2028.
“The Olympics are very much the goal,” said Martin Cafasso, Natalya’s father. “At this point, she’s 13th in seniors, with two years to go before L.A.. It would be still a long shot for an 18-year-old, particularly in épée, to get there, but she feels like she can do it.”
This story is part of a partnership between Cambridge Day and the Boston University Department of Journalism.
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