Hometown: Dunwoody, Ga.
Height: 5'7"
Birthdate: February 14, 1983
Coach: Arkady Burdan
Club: Nellya Fencers
Performance Short List:
Most recently ranked 1st in the world and 1st in the U.S. (2004)
Two-time NCAA Saber Champion (Yale), 2001, 2002
Four-time Senior World Championships team member (2000-2003)
Sada made history in June of 2003 when she won two World Cup competitions in a row, becoming the first U.S. woman and second U.S. fencer to ever rank No. 1 in the world. She’s held that rank for 11 months as of May, and will head to the 2004 Olympic Games as a favorite to earn a medal.
Personal: When she is not training full-time for a spot on the U.S. Olympic Team, Sada is living the life of a typical college student. Keeping her skills sharp as a part of Yale University’s saber fencing team, she has recently decided to take time away from college to focus on fencing.
“I was really inspired by the amount of training and work that goes into trying to make a run at the Olympics, and I realized that I really needed to take this semester off from school to have the best shot at not just making an Olympic team, but really doing well in the Olympics.”
Why fencing? “Because it’s very athletic but also so intellectual. There’s always something different to learn For the most part, it doesn’t get boring.”
On Athens: “I’ve only been fencing for six years but in that time, I’ve witnessed women’s saber get its start and become an event worthy of being in the Olympics. That’s very exciting for me. Making this team and being a part, seeing the others who have also is kind of the embodiment of six years of being part of the sport, and watching it grow.”
Did You Know?
Fencing is a family affair for the Jacobsons. Younger sister Emily will compete with her on the 2004 Olympic Team. Youngest sis, Jackie, is climbing the Youth-14 ranks. And father David was a member of the 1974 Men’s National Saber Team.“I’m lucky that I have my sister on the same team. We focus each other. Even at ordinary practice, we’ll have a lot of very competitive bouts between my sister and I, and our dad also fences with us. That really helps with competitive training.”And who wins when Sada fences with dad? “Usually me. But not always.”
Sada was honored by the Jewish Sports Hall of Fame with the Marty Glickman Award (2002).She studies history at Yale, and though she’s not sure exactly what she’ll do after college, she wants to have a career that has something to do with sports.