Kentucky's Lee Kiefer, Will Shaner win gold at Tokyo Olympics

(Photo by Sergei BobylevTASS via Getty Images)

Two Kentucky Wildcats have already won gold in Tokyo. Lee Kiefer, a Lexington native and student at UK’s College of Medicine, became the first American to win gold in the individual foil in fencing this morning, while Will Shaner took home gold in the men’s 10-meter air rifle.

.@leetothekiefer becomes the first American to win individual foil GOLD 🇺🇸 🥇@usafencing x @teamusa x #TokyoOlympics pic.twitter.com/wYUuNOU33m

— #TokyoOlympics (@NBCOlympics) July 25, 2021

Will Shaner, the youngest man to compete for @TeamUSA in a rifle event, won gold in the 10-meter air rifle. #TokyoOlympics x @USAShooting pic.twitter.com/LVJXEyxL37

— #TokyoOlympics (@NBCOlympics) July 25, 2021

Kiefer, a three-time Olympian, beat 2016 Olympic champion Inna Deriglazova of the Russian Olympic Committee 15-13 in the final. Larisa Korobeynikova, also of the ROC, won bronze. Kiefer finished 10th in the event in Rio and is currently ranked No. 5 in the country. She graduated from Paul Lawrence Dunbar High School in 2012 and is in her third year at UK College of Medicine. Her husband, fellow UK med student Gerek Meinhardt, also competes for Team USA in individual foil and won bronze in Rio in 2016. He starts his qualifying rounds tonight at 8 p.m. ET (live stream).

(Photo by Matthias Hangst/Getty Images)

(Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

Shaner, a 20-year-old rising senior at UK, is the youngest male to compete for Team USA in shooting. He placed third in qualifying but took it to another level in the final, scoring 10.5 or above on 13 of his 24 shots and setting an Olympic record of 251.6, only 1.2 shy of the world record. He beat out China’s Lihao Sheng for the gold.

“Still trying to believe it,” Shaner told USA TODAY afterwards. “It’s been a long time, though, growing up in the sport, progressing. To finally have (the gold medal), it’s amazing.”

Shaner will compete in the mixed shooting 10m air rifle along with fellow UK Rifle member Mary Tucker on Monday and Tuesday.

(Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

(Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

USA has won ten medals so far, four of them gold. Two of them from Kentucky Wildcats. Awesome.