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August 17, 2004 3:35 pm

Oregon fencer ousted in first round

By MIKE PRATER

Gannett News Service

ATHENS - Seth Kelsey admits it - he was nervous. More nervous than he should have been, and it cost him his Olympic dream, at least for now.

The 1999 graduate of Oregon Episcopal School in Portland dropped his first-round bout in men's individual epee at the Summer Olympics Tuesday, losing 15-11 to Russian Igor Tourchine in 4 minutes, 50 seconds.

Kelsey's goal was to reach the round of 16 - the one-day tournament is bracketed just like the NCAA basketball tournaments - and all he needed was one victory after getting a first-round bye.

``I was too nervous and I was too timid on my attacks, letting him control the distance and the timing, which got me into trouble early on,'' said Kelsey, 22, the top-seeded American in the tournament at No. 7 and a 2003 graduate of the Air Force Academy, where he studied behavioral science.Kelsey led 2-1 before quickly falling behind 7-3 and never recovering inside the Helliniko Fencing Hall. The 6-foot-4 Kelsey also said he struggled with the fact that Tourchine is six inches shorter, left-handed and uses a French grip that gives him extra reach.

Kelsey - a first-time Olympian and the 2003 NCAA men's epee champion at Air Force - said his problems started the night before when he couldn't sleep. During the bout, the second lieutenant said his heartbeat was pounding at a huge rate.

``I tried to sit down (after the first period), and then tried to make some good touches (in the second), but I just couldn't settle down. This time I just couldn't bring it,'' he said. ``The times that I thought I made really good actions, he doubled it, which was disheartening.''

Kelsey said he needs to improve his footwork and cross-training in hopes of returning to the Olympics for the 2008 Summer Games in Beijing.

``This gives me some stuff to train with for the next four years,'' he said. ``There was nothing I could have done today. It's just a part of the experience.''

Kelsey competes in the team epee starting Sunday.

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