Halsted cruises to British title

Halsted is the British number two and the european bronze medallist

European bronze medallist Laurence Halsted won his first men's foil title at the British Fencing Championships.

Halsted, the British number two, cruised through the final 15-9 against the top-ranked junior Marcus Mepstead.

British number one Richard Kruse was favourite to win the title after his European silver, but went out in the last-32 stage to Mepstead.

The women's foil title went to Anna Bentley who beat Claire Bennett 15-9 in what was a relatively tame final.

British number one Martina Emanuel could only manage fifth after losing 10-9 to Bentley in the quarter-finals.

The men's sabre saw an exciting final as the 14th-ranked Maiyuran Ratneswaran forced his way through to meet the experienced Chris Buxton.

And Buxton, the British number three, came out on top, prevailing 15-13.

The women's sabre event saw Louise Bond-Williams return to the top after edging out Chrystall Nicoll 15-14 in a close fight.

In the epee, Mary Cohen was unlucky not to hang on to her title.

After a slow start she led in the final against Corinna Lawrence until the closing stages when her opponent surged ahead to snatch the title 15-13 after winning three consecutive points.

The men's epee final was livelier with Tom Bennett defeating James Taylor 15-13 in another close fight.