They defeated the Chinese team 45-39 in the gold medal match at the Makuhari Messe in Chiba to become Paralympic champions.

The RPC had lost their first match of the day 45-38 to China in the preliminary pool one, but beat Iraq 45-29 and Italy 45-18 to progress to the semi-finals, where they overcame Britain 45-35.

They then avenged the defeat to China in the final, winning four of the last five relays in the bout.

Tian Jianquan and Sun Gang scored five points to their opponents Shaburov and Kuzyukov’s four to put China into an early 10-8 lead, but an impressive display from Yusupov saw him score seven touches to Hu Daoliang’s one to put his team 15-11 ahead.

Tian hit back with nine touches to Kuzyukov’s one, but Shaburov’s 8-1 triumph over Hu gave the RPC a lead which they did not relinquish.

Yusupov edged Sun 6-5 and Kuzyukov saw off Hu 5-4 to give their team a 35-30 advantage.

The deficit was cut to four points by Tian against Yusupov, before Shaburov’s five touches to Sun’s three reached the 45 points required to win the Paralympic title.

All three team members who competed in the final were part of the épée team that won gold at the Wheelchair Fencing World Championships at Rome in 2017 and Cheongju in 2019, and at the European Championships in Terni in Italy in 2018.

This was Kuzyukov’s second gold of Tokyo 2020, having triumphed in the men’s individual épée category B event.

Kuzyukov has spinal cord injuries after being hit by a beam on a construction site at the age of 18, losing the use of his legs in the incident.

He won the individual épée category B world title at Budapest in 2013, where he also won team épée silver.

Born in Maryanovka and now based in Omsk, the now-34-year-old first took up the sport in 2009 and made his international debut in 2011, competing at the London 2012 Paralympics.

Shaburov and Yusupov are both category A wheelchair fencers.

The former was a silver medallist in the individual épée category A event at Tokyo 2020, and became individual épée and sabre category A world champion at Rome 2017, and individual épée category A European champion at Terni 2018.

Shaburov has also won two silvers in the men’s team sabre and two bronzes in épée and sabre team events at the World Championships.

He is second in the International Wheelchair and Amputee Sports Federation (IWAS) men’s épée category A world rankings.

Born and based in Novosibirsk, the 25-year-old has cerebral palsy and took up wheelchair fencing aged 14.

Yusupov is just behind him in third in the IWAS men’s épée category A world rankings and is the oldest member of the team at 37.

He reached the quarter-finals of the individual épée category A event at this, his second Paralympic Games, losing to Sun.

At London 2012, Yusupov just missed out on a medal in the individual épée category A event, finishing fourth.

As well as his two team golds at the World Championships, Yusupov earned a silver in the individual épée category A at Cheongju 2019.

He has also won three silvers in team events and seven bronzes at the World Championships during his career and contributed to épée and foil team successes at the Terni 2018 European Championships.

Yusupov lost his leg in 1999 and took up wheelchair fencing for the first time in 2002.

He made his international debut in 2010.

Standby Nagaev, aged 27, also entered the men’s individual foil and sabre category A events at Tokyo 2020, reaching the quarter-finals of the latter competition.

He won gold at the European Championships in 2018 in the men’s team foil, an event he won silver and bronze in at the World Championships in 2017 and 2019 respectively.

Nagaev began fencing in 2002, taking up wheelchair fencing in 2016 following his impairment.

The team’s gold was the RPC’s eighth at Tokyo 2020.