Wyrobek wins Black Horns Cup Open Steel Saber after 71-fencer field

Franciszek Wyrobek won Black Horns Cup 2026’s Open Steel Saber after surviving a 71-fencer field, and Krakowska Szkoła Fechtunku put two fencers on the podium. Tomasz Pawliszewski of Mordschlag Łódź finished second, Karol Zakrzewski of Krakowska Szkoła Fechtunku took third, and Konrad Kramarz of Mordschlag Łódź placed fourth.

That top four says a lot about how deep steel saber has become in the mature HEMA circuit. A bracket of 71 competitors is a long, punishing day in a weapon class built on speed, timing, and nerve, and Wyrobek had to keep clearing opponents across a field wide enough to expose any gap in conditioning or tactical range. The balance at the top also mattered: Krakowska Szkoła Fechtunku and Mordschlag Łódź each landed two fencers in the leading quartet, showing that the final rounds were not a one-club march but a tight contest between two of Poland’s strongest saber programs.

The rest of the listed placements reinforced that depth. Antoni Olbrychski of Akademia Szermierzy finished fifth, Anton Triscornia of Gwiazdy Katowice DESW was sixth, Jarosław Konopiński of Akademia Szermierzy took seventh, Victor Sochaczewski of Poznańska Grupa Fechtunku SALUT came eighth, and Eetu Sipilä of EHMS was ninth. That spread, with clubs from Kraków, Łódź, Katowice, Poznań, and EHMS all represented near the top, pointed to a division with real national breadth and at least some cross-border presence in the final stages.

Black Horns Cup 2026 ran June 12-14 in Kórnik, near Poznań, Poland, as part of the Polish League of HEMA under the patronage of the Polish HEMA Federation. The event’s finals coverage spanned Open Sabre, Open Sword & Buckler, Women’s Sabre, Open Longsword, Open Rapier & Dagger, and Women’s Longsword, underscoring that this was a multi-weapon weekend rather than a one-off saber meet.

Wyrobek’s result also fits a clear pattern. He already won Mixed Steel Sabre at Black Horns Cup 2024, where that division drew 144 fencers, so the 2026 Open Steel Saber title reads less like an isolated breakout and more like another peak in an established run. With the tournament described as cyclical and organized since 2018, this year’s open saber final added another strong marker to a Polish HEMA calendar that keeps producing crowded fields and familiar names at the sharp end.