Yémi Apithy

Yémi Geoffrey Apithy (born 5 April 1989) is a French-Beninese sabre fencer representing Benin in international competitions, silver medalist at the 2014 and 2015 African Championships. He bore the flag for Benin at the 2016 Summer Olympics.

Career Apithy holds dual French-Beninese citizenship: his father is from Benin, whilst his mother is French. He took up fencing as a child, following the path of his elder brother Boladé, who would become world silver medalist in sabre. He also practiced rugby union before his father made him choose between the two sports.

Both brothers trained at the fencing club ASPTT Dijon. Yémi earned a bronze medal in the U13 national championships and then became a national champion in the cadet (U17) category. He joined the junior national team for the 2007 Junior European Championships in Prague, where France ranked 4 in the team event.

In the 2010–2011 season, he won the team event at the French national championships together with his brother and Nicolas Rousset. The same scenario played out in 2014, when he was eliminated in the final by another Egyptian, Mohamed Amer. At the 2015 World Fencing Championships, he reached the last 64 again before losing to Iran's Mojtaba Abedini.

In March 2016, he qualified to the 2016 Summer Olympics as one of the two highest-ranked fencers from Africa. He bore the flag of Benin at the opening ceremony and became the first Olympic fencer from his country. In the men's sabre event he lost in the first round to Germany's Max Hartung.