James Williams

James Williams (16 October 1966 – 12 May 2024) was a competitive fencer. He competed for Great Britain at the 1992 Olympic Games, 1996 Olympic Games and 2000 Olympic Games. Williams died on 12 May 2024, at the age of 57.

Biography Williams was born on 16 October 1966 in Huddersfield. He started fencing when he joined the Army Junior Leaders Regiment based in Dover, and was introduced to fencing by PTI and fencing coach, Les Welham. Soon afterwards he won the Army Fencing Championship and Master of Arms competitions. In 1996 and 2000, he won the sabre title at the British Fencing Championships.

Williams was coached by Péter Fröhlich for a number of years, and together with Ian Williams they ran a summer training camp at Grantham in the UK. He was highly regarded and involved at the top levels of fencing in Britain; he coached British Juniors at internationals in 2024, was the Team Manager for Team GB Fencing at the 2005 World Student Games in İzmir, Turkey and was responsible for Olympic Pathways and TASS program delivery, and was the Strength and Conditioning lead for GB Fencing. Williams coached at Sheffield Sword Club, where he was the principal coach until June 2010. Williams coached at City FC, MX Fencing and at Brentwood School.

International competitions Competition Year Result World Championships Havana 2003 54 World Championships Lisbon 2002 L16 World Championships Nîmes 2001 Olympic Games Sydney 2000 16th World Championships Seoul 1999 Commonwealth Fencing Federation Games (Kuala Lumpur) 1998 Individual Bronze Team Gold (England) World Championships Lisbon 1998 World Championships Cape Town 1997 Olympic Games Atlanta 1996 27th World Championships The Hague 1995 World Championships Athens 1994 World Championships Essen 1993 Olympic Games Barcelona 1992 Team 12th