Metro Detroit doctor reflects on her Olympic experience as she helps USA fencing team prepare

Fencing is a sport that puts Olympians in a position where they can compete relatively safely just due to the quirks of the sport.

Metro Detroit Dr. Ann Marsh is a former Olympic competitor in fencing.

“Walking into the venue was one of the most exciting but scary moment of my life,” Marsh said.

Marsh competed in 1992 in Barcelona, 1996 in Atlanta and 2000 in Sydney. She stepped down as a captain in 2018.

Marsh now works as an emergency room physician for Independent Emergency Physicians and practices at St. Joseph Mercy Hospital Oakland. She has been treating COVID patients for the last 17 months.

She said the fencing team for Team USA is doing fine, getting acclimated and organized for their competitions that begin Friday. She said fencing is in a uniquely perfect sport to compete in during a pandemic.

She said there’s not really close contact during competition. She also said the entire team has been vaccinated.

Watch the video above for the full story.

More: Complete coverage of the Tokyo Olympics


About the Authors:

Paula Tutman is an Emmy award-winning journalist who came to Local 4 in 1992. She's married and the stepmother of three beautiful and brilliant daughters. Her personal philosophy in life, love and community is, "Do as much as you can possibly do, not as little as you can possibly get away with".

Kayla is a Web Producer for ClickOnDetroit. Before she joined the team in 2018 she worked at WILX in Lansing as a digital producer.