Becca Ward, the world's top seed in women's saber, said it was very unfortunate to see her rival, the Spanish fencer Araceli Navarro get injured when fighting with her in the elimination match on Sunday.

"I am sorry to see that, but it was not my fault to make it happen." she told reporters after the game.

Ward said she was satisfied with her performance today, and she would fight till "the very end."

Araceli left the piste without saying anything, and her coach admitted that the injuries in Araceli's shoulder and arms could not be blamed on Becca.

Aged 18, Ward is the youngest in the US fencing team, and attracted world's attention after she clinched the world championship title Turi, Italy in 2006.

She was widely regarded as one of the gold medal favorites, among her teammate Mariel Zagunis, China's Tan Xue, for the women's saber gold in the Beijing Games.

(Xinhua News Agency August 9, 2008)