Reigning world champion Sofia Pozdniakova overcame Ukraine's Olga Kharlan to secure victory in Athens ©Getty Images

Reigning world champion Sofia Pozdniakova overcame Ukraine's Olga Kharlan to secure victory at the International Fencing Federation Women’s Sabre World Cup in Athens.

The 21-year-old Russian beat Kharlan 15-10 in the final at the Athens Olympic Complex.

The triumph for Podzniakova, the current world number four, saw her add to the gold medal she claimed at last year's World Championships in Wuxi.

Podzniakova defeated South Korea's Kim Ji-yeon, the London 2012 Olympic sabre champion, 15-11 in her semi-final.

Kharlan, a three-time world champion and four-time Olympic medallist, had thrashed Hungarian Liza Pusztai 15-5 to join the Russian in the final.

Luca Curatoli delivered gold for the host nation at the Men's Sabre World Cup in Padoue ©Getty Images
Luca Curatoli delivered gold for the host nation at the Men's Sabre World Cup in Padoue ©Getty Images

Kim and Pusztai took home bronze medals following their semi-final defeats.

Top seed Sofya Velikaya of Russia endured a difficult outing as she failed to get beyond the last 16, losing to China's Qian Jiarui.

Luca Curatoli delivered gold for the host nation at the Men's Sabre World Cup in Padoue in Italy.

The 2015 world team champion beat compatriot Aldo Montano 15-13 in the final to top the podium in front of a home crowd.

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