For the team events, 8 teams qualified in each event. Each team must be composed of 3 fencers, with a fourth alternate. The top 4 ranked teams qualified. The next-best ranked team from each zone (Africa, the Americas, Europe, and Asia-Oceania) also qualified as long as it was ranked in the top 16. If a zone did not have any team ranked between fifth and sixteenth, the best-placed nation not already qualified was selected regardless of zone.[2]
For individual events the 3 fencers from the team event qualified for individual competition automatically. 6 more places were awarded based on the rankings (ignoring fencers from countries with team qualifications, and considering only the top fencer from each country): the top 2 fencers from each of Europe and Asia-Oceania, and the top 1 fencer from Africa and the Americas. 4 more places (1 per zone) were awarded through zone qualifying tournaments; only countries without a qualified fencer in an event were eligible to participate in these zone qualifying tournaments.[2]
The host country was entitled to 8 quota spots for individual fencers, in addition to those qualified in the above mechanism, respecting the maximum quota of athletes per country (3 per weapon). If enough of these spots will be used to bring to 3 the number of participants in an individual event, the host country will also take part in the corresponding team event, bringing the number of teams to 9. Unused host country spots, should there be any, were to be awarded to other countries through the FIE universality quota and the Tripartite Commission.[2]
French fencerDaniel Jérent initially qualified to fence in the individual and teamépée events, but was banned from participating due to a positiveurine test for a banned product.[3][4][5][6] Jérent was replaced byRomain Cannone, who competed in the two events in which Jérent was entered, andRonan Gustin was recalled as a team replacement.[5] Cannone later went on to win the individual event.
AmericanAlen Hadzic initially qualified to fence in team épée on Team USA as a replacement athlete. But he was suspended due tosexual misconduct from competing by theUnited States Center for SafeSport; he then had his suspension reduced to a lesser sanction by an arbitrator.[7][8][9] Ultimately, Hadzic was permanently banned from fencing by SafeSport for his sexual misconduct.[10][11][12][13][14]
Cairo
Madrid
Tashkent
San José
Algeria
Argentina
Azerbaijan
Brazil
Canada
Chile
China
Colombia
Czech Republic
Estonia
France
Georgia
Germany
Great Britain
Greece
Hong Kong
Hungary
India
Iran
Italy
Japan
Kazakhstan
Kyrgyzstan
Mexico
Morocco
Netherlands
Peru
Poland
Romania
ROC
South Korea
Senegal
Singapore
Switzerland
Tunisia
Turkey
Ukraine
United States
Uzbekistan
Venezuela
Qualification for the2020 Summer Olympics