Northwestern University Athletics

Juliana Barrett

Northwestern Fencer Juliana Barrett Strives for Olympic Bid

11/13/2015 11:00:00 AM | Women's Fencing

By Martina Barrera-Hernandez

"I theoretically owe a lot of people tickets to the Olympics," Juliana Barrett says laughing.
 
A Northwestern senior and epee squad starter from New York City, Barrett placed seventh at the NCAA Midwest Regionals and finished tenth at the NCAA Championships in the 2014-15 season. But while leading the team and balancing NU's rigorous academics with varsity sports, Barrett is also traveling across the globe pursuing her Olympic dream: to fence in the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Summer Olympic Games for South Africa.
 
Twelve years ago, Barrett picked up her first foil and began fencing by accident, literally. After breaking her left tibia when she was nine years old, Barrett's mother suggested she pick up a sport in order to strengthen the weakened leg. The third grader chose fencing after her mother explained that it was similar to what they had seen in Robin Hood. Since then, Barrett has become a self-proclaimed "fencing addict."
 
In her first national competition at age 12, Barrett finished in second place. It was at that time that she realized there might be a future for her in fencing.
 
"That was really validating and motivating for me — that I could actually do so well," Barrett says. "It affirmed that there was so much more potential there than even I had seen. Before that is was just a fun sport, but that result made continuing on much more of a reality."
 
At age 14, in an effort to reconnect with her father's South African family, Barrett chose to acquire her South African citizenship and fence for the country. Once she began fencing for South Africa, Barrett was able to travel to events around the world and gain access to better training. In turn, her move gave South African fencing a boost and contributed to raising its standards, she says. Her first international event was the fencing World Cup in Australia. As the youngest on the South African team, Barrett never felt a lot of pressure and says that the experience was more about learning. Once Barrett started competing in events abroad, she confirmed that fencing was her life.
 
"There was a lot of validation doing well on the international level in South Africa, " Barrett says. "To go to South Africa and be doing consistently well gave me the confidence I needed to continue and feel like there was a purpose behind what I was doing. To have the exposure and realize the opportunities that fencing was giving me … was super exciting and it motivated me to keep going because it was all becoming such a reality."
 
In 2012, Barrett and the team hoped to compete in the Summer Olympic Games in London. Unfortunately, South Africa was not able to secure a spot amongst the top 16 teams in order to qualify. Almost four years later — while she would love to clinch a team spot for the 2016 Olympics — Barrett is hoping to qualify individually, as she is the top epee fencer in South Africa.
 
"Because this is a very important dream to me I am very focused on the individual qualification," Barrett says. I'm not going to put all of my eggs in one basket — I would love to qualify as a team — but I know that things don't always happen the way you want them. I have to be realistic and also consider the individual process."
 
To go on to the Olympics, Barrett must compete in a national qualifying event with direct elimination. As she heads towards fulfilling her Olympic dreams her previous wins are a source of assurance.
 
"I'm very confident just because all of the other people I would be competing against, for the most part, I've beaten before," Barrett says. However, she also recognizes that because epee is a very emotional and strategic sport, just because she beat them once doesn't necessarily mean she will do so again.
 
As a Northwestern student-athlete, Barrett must strike a balance between her academics, NU fencing and Olympic training. This can often prove difficult when she is travelling to events all over the world most weekends of the year, as well as competing for the Wildcats. Luckily, Barrett's support system at home and at NU has allowed her to achieve more than she ever thought she could.
 
"Seeing other people be excellent in their own realms has been really inspiring — seeing how other athletes dedicate themselves — reminds me that I really want to do this," Barrett says. "[It reminds me that] this is a choice … I'm choosing to put this on myself … and my teammates have been really supportive, especially my epee squad. I'm asking a lot of them — because I'm not only asking them to work hard collegiately, but also to help me get ready for the Olympics and that's not necessarily their responsibility and they've been very supportive in that regard."
 
While she doesn't feel burdened by pressure, Barrett feels a sense of obligation to all those that have helped her to advance in her sport.
 
"In general, there's pressure because [my goals] come up a lot, even if I'm not trying to bring it up," Barrett says. "It's just such a big part of what I'm doing with my life and so just that conversation creates a level of pressure because then it's somewhat expected. Having this as part of my identity, it's part of how people recognize me and understand me as a person, which gives me a lot to live up to. But I want to live up to that. I want to show them that they've been successful in their support."
 
Although Barrett admits she has a lot of room to grow as an athlete, her journey has already taught her a great deal about herself as a fencer and she uses that knowledge to propel her forward as she fences her way to an Olympic medal.
 
"You need to go into [an event] thinking you deserve it no matter what. It took me a while to learn that," Barrett says. "I've learned over the course of the past four years that you have to go in thinking you're going to win. You need that confidence. It's not about being cocky; it's about being smart and assuming victory. That confidence to not just try and get a touch, but to take the touch that is already yours."
 

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